Faba bean Production Guideline Useing Rhizobial Bio-fertilizer Technology

Abstract

Faba bean (Vicia Faba L.) is a much valued food legume in the Middle-East, the Mediterranean region, China and Ethiopia Muehlbauer et al., 1997. Faba bean originated from the Middle-East in the prehistoric period. Seeds dated from 6250 BCE have been found in Jericho McVicar et al., 2013. Faba bean is now widespread in Europe, North Africa, Central Asia, China, South America, the USA, Canada and Australia. Faba bean production for food and feed was 4.5 million t worldwide in 2012. The 5 top producing countries are China, Ethiopia, and Australia, France and United Kingdom and account for more than 75% of world production. China alone produced 34% of all faba beans in 2013 FAO, 2014. However, faba bean utilization and production has been declining in the last decades by 50% between 1960 to 2010 due to the replacement of traditional cropping systems by industrialized cereal-based systems Jensen et al., 2010; McVicar et al., 2013. Faba bean can be cultivated where annual rainfall is between 700 mm and 1000 mm, and consistently distributed during the growth season Muehlbauer et al., 1997. In the tropics and subtropics, faba bean can be grown above 1200 m and up to an altitude of 2500 m Eco crop, 2014. Faba bean does better on deep, well-structured claysoils but it can grow on a wide range of soils provided they are not too acidic or saline. Acidic soils with high levels of aluminum and manganese can be detrimental to growth Matthews et al., 2003. Moist and poorly drained soils with a low pH should be avoided as they promote root rot and other diseases McVicar et al., 2013. Faba bean plants can be used to make good quality silage McVicar et al., 2013. Faba bean straw is valued and considered a cash crop in Egypt and Sudan Muehlbauer et al., 1997. Faba bean is grown for green manure production or as a legume ley in cereal/legume rotations McVicar et al., 2013; Muehlbauer et al., 1997. This legume crop is also known for its ability to form endosymbiotic association with root nodulating bacteria (rhizobia) group called Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. vicia. Faba bean ranks among the most important pulse crops in Ethiopia and occupies about 1.5% of the total cultivated area and in about 14% of cultivated vertisols in the country Mussa, et al. 2004. Coordinated research work on faba bean was started in 1972 in Ethiopia Asfaw et al. 1994. However, its production per unit area and area of production as a whole is still low. For instance, in Arsi zone, the area covered with pulses is very minimal, 58580 ha (10.29%) of which 6.53% is faba bean CSA, 2002. Faba bean popularity has increased recently as its high yield makes it attractive to producers while its high protein content and low-priced makes it attractive to consumers Pala et al., 2000. Ethiopia, with the current estimated population of 95 million which grows at a rate of 2.4%, has one of the world's highest incidences of malnutrition. Though agriculture is the most important source of livelihood employing 80% of the labor, the overall food production is far from self-sufficient. Faba bean is the backbone of the economy and the scanty economic resources of Ethiopian farmers and necessitates the intense use of rehabilitation and sustainable soil management system that can accommodate increased crop production and enhance soil fertility. The legume-rhizobia (a symbiotic bacteria capable of invading and eliciting root or stem nodules on leguminous plants to convert atmospheric nitrogen (N2) into ammonia (NH3) in plant roots) symbiosis plays a very important role in a productive and sustainable agriculture. While research has indicated many promising avenues for introduction of Nitrogen-fixing strains into cropping systems and for enhancement of the contributions from Nitrogen-fixation, to date few of these technologies for instance Strain 1018, 1035 and EAL 110 have been adopted by farmers. An important note is that most of the technologies that are likely to lead to improvements of Nitrogen fixation in different cropping systems are well within the reach of research programs in developing countries. The technologies can deliver enormous benefits through judicious use of bio-fertilizers. Several demonstration works confirmed that leguminous crops show remarkable growth and yield response to rhizobial inoculations in different agro-ecologies in Ethiopia. As a result, the uses of rhizobial inoculants have been showing magnificent yield increment and improve condition of soil fertility. Therefore the objective of this guideline is to deliver farmers, extension workers and seed producers with a standardized and simplified Rhizobial bio-fertilizer users.