Farmers in Montana, and other parts of the Northern Great Plains, are shifting from cereal mono-cropping to a cereal-dry pea cropping system. This transition is not without its share of unknowns, however.
Yield and performance of pea crops depend on both their genetics and the environment. Environmental factors such as temperature and rainfall can vary greatly. Farmers in different parts of the Plains need to know which varieties of pea will do well in the area they are farming.
Farmers in Montana, and other parts of the Northern Great Plains, are shifting from cereal mono-cropping to a cereal-dry pea cropping system. This transition is not without its share of unknowns, however.
Yield and performance of pea crops depend on both their genetics and the environment. Environmental factors such as temperature and rainfall can vary greatly. Farmers in different parts of the Plains need to know which varieties of pea will do well in the area they are farming.
Chengci Chen of Montana State University is working to generate that information. He has been studying how pea genetics interact with the environment to affect crop yields, and pea protein and starch content.
“Ultimately, I hope to be able to recommend which pea varieties to cultivate to growers in various environments,” says Chen.
To do that, Chen and his colleagues tested how nine different varieties of pea performed when grown in five locations across Montana. These locations were spread across the state and had different soils and climatic conditions.
Continue reading at American Society of Agronomy
Photo credit Central Agricultural Research Center.
