Spring 1997 Southern Pea Variety Trial

Hidalgo County, Texas

 

L. Brandenberger & R. Wiedenfeld

Texas Agricultural Extension Service & Texas Agricultural Experiment Station

Introduction:

Evaluation of new southern pea cultivars and advanced breeding lines for use in South Texas is important for both producers and processors of this crop. In the past few years some new material has been evaluated in the Falfurrias area north of the Lower Rio Grande Valley (L.R.G.V.), but no tests have taken place in the L.R.G.V.

Objective:

The objective of this trial was to evaluate and compare southern pea cultivars for differences in earliness, yield and maturity in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas.

Methods and Materials:

Treatments in the trial included 20 different southern pea cultivars, (Table 1), all with bush type growth habit and erect pod setting. All cultivars were direct seeded March 24, 1997 in a randomized block design with four replications. Plots were one row wide by 25 feet long with a 40 inch spacing between rows and an in-row plant spacing of approximately two inches. The trial was grown at the Research and Extension Center in Weslaco and received no supplemental irrigation or fertilization. Weed control consisted of three cultivations, but no herbicide. No applications of either insecticide or fungicide were made.

Parameters measured consisted of ratings for foliage color and flowering, net yield and soaked weight. Ratings for foliage color were done on April 28 and May 23, 1997. Foliage color ratings were based on a scale where 100=dark green color and ratings less than 100 represent a proportional loss in green color due to chlorosis of the foliage. Flowering ratings were conducted on May 23 and May 30, 1997 and are given as a percentage of full flowering. Harvest data included net yield, and percent increase in weight after soaking. Net yield was determined by multiplying the harvest weights times the percent shelled weight. Percent increase in weight from soaking was determined by weighing the shelled peas after they were soaked over night in one liter of water, subtracting the dry weight from the soaked weight, dividing the difference by the dry weight and multiplying times 100.

All replicated data were analyzed using Analysis of Variance and Duncan's multiple range test with P=0.05.

Results:

Foliage color ratings recorded on April 28 varied significantly and ranged from a high of 66.3 to a low of 42.5 on a 100 point rating scale, (Table 2). The three cultivars with the highest ratings and darkest green color were Arkansas 87-435-68, Excel and Arkansas 95-368 which had ratings of 66.3, 57.5 and 57.5, respectively. All foliage color ratings increased over time and on May 23 the five highest ratings were 87.5, 82.5, 82.5, 81.3 and 81.3, respectively, for Arkansas 95-368, 87-435-68, 91-285, Excel and 95-241.

Flowering ratings varied significantly on both days that they were recorded and ranged from a high of 53.8 percent to a low of 0.3 percent on the first rating, (Table 2). On the first date Arkansas 96-593, 95-671, 95-301 had ratings of 53.8, 48.8 and 47.5 percent, respectively. These ratings represent the highest amount of flowering for this rating. Arkansas 96-593, 95-301, 95-671 and 95-368 recorded the highest flowering ratings on the second date, with ratings of 95.0, 92.5, 83.8 and 82.5 percent, respectively.

Net yields were significantly different between several of the cultivars in the trial (Table 2). Yields ranged from 419.4 to 1104.4 pounds per acre. Those with the highest net yields included Arkansas 92-552, 87-435-68, 92-551, Excel, 95-273 and 95-195; with yields of 1104.4, 1072.3, 984.2, 967.8, 962.2 and 950.2, pounds per acre, respectively.

The percent increase in weight from soaking ranged from a high of 139.9 to a low of 107.8 percent, (Table 2). Differences between cultivars varied significantly with Arkansas 87-435-68 and Excel recording the highest percent increases due to soaking of 139.9 and 137.0 percent, respectively. The increase in weight due to soaking also provides some indication of maturity, with peas that are drier and more mature at harvest generally being able to imbibe more water during soaking.

Discussion:

Weather has always been a major factor in how crops perform in a given season, and the spring of 1997 was no exception. Cool and wet conditions delayed planting of the trial for over a month and slowed the development of the varieties in the trial. Foliage color ratings were taken to determine if differences existed between different cultivars for chlorosis caused from high soil pH and from the lower soil temperatures that were experienced from the weather. It appears that Arkansas 87-435-68 does have some tolerance to conditions that cause foliage to be chlorotic, and this correlates with data that was recorded in a 1995 trial on the Research and Extension Center at Weslaco. There was a wide range in performance of different varieties regarding flowering and yield. Some varieties were slow to flower, as low as 12.5 percent on May 30, while at the same time other varieties recorded ratings above 90 percent, but early flowering did not necessarily mean a variety would be a high producer. The highest producing varieties (Arkansas 87-435-86 and Arkansas 92-552) produced net yields in excess of 1000 pounds per acre, but were considerably below 90 percent at the last flowering rating. We hope that information from this trial will be useful to producers in selecting southern pea varieties better suited to the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

Acknowledgments:

We would like to acknowledge the assistance from Mr. Juan Bernal, Mr. Venancio Gonzalez and Mr. Carlos Rodriguez for their time and efforts to make this project successful. We would also like to thank Dr. T.E. Morelock for supplying seed for the trial.

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