ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS ON FLOWERING AND SEED SETTING IN VICIA FABA EQUINA PERS.

Research on the ‘Gemini’ cv. of horse bean was carried out in the open air for five years (1988 – 1992). The aim of the work was to analyse the effect of three crop densities (7, 35, 100 plants per square meter), on the growth habit, fruit setting and seed quality.

The climatic factors (temperature, rainfall, solar radiation) could not be clearly correlated with flowers and setting, while the various densities caused clear differences in all the considered morphological characters, mainly in the number of flower per plant (from 44 in the least densities to 13 in the highest).

Significant differences were also noted in the number of fertile legumes per plant and of seeds, both commercial and aborted.
The flower shedding was slightly lesser in the density of 7 plants / m², while the abortion of young fruits did not show any clear correlation with plant density.
The number of seeds per pod was almost the same in the three densities.

Last of all the quality (weight, germinability and vigour) of the seeds was higher in the intermediate density, so it is likely that the limitation of fertility concerns mainly the flowering phase.

International Symposium on Agrotechnics and Storage of Vegetable and Ornamental Seeds

L. Quagliotti, S. Bruno, S. Lotito, P. Belletti, E. Nada

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1994.362.12