Title : Early flowering and maturity, number of racemes and biomass in lablab (Lablab purpureus) accessions in dry farming Systems in Tanzania
Abstract:
Lablab is multi-purpose crop with a wide range of benefits compared to its relatives. It is a promising drought tolerant crop with plenty of food components especially protein and vitamins. It is a potential food resource for human and animal consumption. Livestock produce high quality milk and meat when feeding on Lablab. Lablab is also an ornamental crop that is able to attract a broad range of pollinating insects. It is also a biomedical resourceful material. The present study was conducted to evaluate selected Lablab accessions for early flowering, number of racemes and early maturity in dry farming systems in Tanzania. Three evaluation sites from different agro-ecological conditions were selected for the study while each site involved experiments with moisture stress-free (MSF) and terminal moisture stress (TMS) conditions. The experiments consisted of a randomized complete block design (RCBD). The twelve Lablab accessions used in the presents study involved the best Lablab accessions obtained from the previous moisture screening experiment in greenhouse at the seedling stage. Data collections involved the days to flowering and maturity, number of racemes and biomass. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post-hoc tests were used to analyze the variation among the accessions and their days to flowering and maturity, number of racemes, and biomass. Their means were used to compare accessions among MSF and TMS. Based on analysis of variations (ANOVA), the significant difference (p<0.05) in days to flowering and maturity, number of racemes and biomass were noted among the accessions and across the sites. The promising trends in early flowering, and maturity, number of racemes and biomass were found in D147, D363, HA4, D349, and D352. It is therefore suggested that, these Lablab accessions would be useful for utilization and breeding purposes among the farming communities in different parts of the world.
