Chickpea

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Chickpeas (lat. Cicer) - a genus of annual and perennial herbaceous plants and shrubs of the Legume family. The most common species is the Chickpea of mutton (lat. Cicer arietinum). Natural range - Central and Central Asia, Mediterranean and South America. Widely cultivated in Australia, India, Pakistan, China and Africa.

Characteristics of culture

Chickpea is a herb or shrub with small, oblong, odd-pinnate or paripinnate leaves equipped with stipules. Stipules serrated, leaf-shaped. Flowers are single or collected in groups of 2-5 pieces, are formed in the axils of the leaves. The calyx is deeply divided, pubescent. The corolla is elongated. The fruit is a pod, oval-oblong in shape, pubescent with hairs, when ripe it opens with two valves. Seeds are warty, broadly ovate.

Application

In some countries, chickpeas are a staple food. A wide variety of dishes and snacks are prepared from chickpea beans. Chickpeas are especially relevant in Mediterranean cuisine. Chickpea is used to make chickpea flour, which is widely used in Indian cuisine.

Growing conditions

Chickpeas have no special requirements for growing conditions. The main condition is a weak weediness of the site and the absence of rhizome perennial weeds. Soils are preferable well-moistened, fertile, loose, light soils. Swampy, saline, heavy clayey and strongly acidic soils are undesirable.

Soil preparation and sowing

Before sowing, the soil is dug up, mineral and organic fertilizers are applied and ridges are formed. Deep plowing is optimal for chickpeas, it promotes the development of nodule (beneficial) bacteria that affect productivity. Chickpeas are sown in early spring, when the soil warms up to a temperature of 5-6C.

Before sowing, the seeds are soaked in water or treated with special preparations containing nodule bacteria, they will increase the yield by 25-30%. Planting depth 3-6 cm (depending on soil moisture). Sow chickpeas in an ordinary way. With the emergence of seedlings, thinning is carried out as necessary.

Care and harvesting

Care consists in watering, weeding, fertilizing with mineral and organic fertilizers. Loosening is required. Treatment against pests and diseases is also needed.

For chickpeas, the growing season is 90-120 days, but these periods depend on the variety and growing conditions. Chickpea beans ripen evenly, as a rule, the beans do not crack or crumble. Before laying the seeds for storage, they are dried and placed in bags.