Planting small size kabuli chickpea seed appears not to hurt yield, but more work is needed to determine whether it affects the seed size of the crop.
Researchers Yantai Gan, Perry Miller, Brian McConkey and Cal McDonald at the Agriculture Canada research station in Swift Current, Sask., have been studying aspects of chickpea seeding for two years
Kabuli chickpeas are priced on the basis of seed size. As of December, buyers were offering a six cents per pound premium for kabuli seed greater than nine millimetres in diameter.
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With an average yield of 20 bushels per acre, a $58 per acre premium could be captured if 80 percent of the seeds are greater than nine millimetres.
Seed cost is the major input for kabuli chickpea production. If small seed could be planted without affecting plant vigor or final seed yield, then seed cost could be reduced and the producer could continue to produce large-sized peas for commercial markets.
For example, to obtain a plant density of four plants per square foot for the variety Sanford, assuming a 75 percent field emergence rate, growers need to plant 180 to 210 pounds per acre of seed that was greater than eight mm, while only 130 to 150 lb. per acre is needed for seed smaller than eight mm.
The difference is 50 to 60 lb. per acre in seed.
At a seed cost of 60 cents per lb. (treated), this represents a potential input saving of $30 to $36 per acre.
Also, seeding equipment may handle small seeds more efficiently, with less plugging and seed damage than large seed, particularly when air drills are used.
The question is how does seed size affect final yield and harvested seed size in kabuli chickpea? Field studies at Swift Current in 1998 and 1999 looked into this.
The experiments showed the size of seed planted did not have a significant impact on plant growth and development, nor on final seed yield in kabuli chickpea.
Average seed yield in 1999 was double that of 1998, mainly due to excellent growing season rainfall. At either level of yield, no differences in final seed yield were found between the small and large seeds planted.
However, it appeared that the small seeded chickpea produced a smaller proportion of the nine-mm seed in 1999.
Studies will now see if small seed can be used generation after generation without creating a small-seeded genetic version of the chickpea variety.
