Diseases of Arid Legumes: Extent and Management

Abstract

Legumes play an important role in improving livelihood, nutritional security of farmers and populations in less developed countries as well as sustainability of agriculture in dry areas worldwide. Grain legumes are important rotational crops in the Pacific Northwest and Northern Great Plains of the United States and central California. The introduction of pulse crops into the agricultural systems in Western Australia is relatively recent and has been supported by considerable research to adapt and develop varieties and production systems to suit this Mediterranean environment. Traditionally grain legume or pulses have been an important constituent of predominantly vegetarian diet of the people of India. These are cultivated over a vast area-nearly 25 million hectares constituting 18 per cent of the total cultivated area in this country, the largest in the world. Legume crops, which include pulses are important source of protein for a large population of vegetarian people of India. The important grain and seed legumes of India are Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.), faba bean (Vicia faba L.), grasspea (Lathyrus sativus L.) and fieldpea (Pisum sativum L.) are grown in cool season, while Clusterbean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.), pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.), blackgram (Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper), mungbean (V. radiata (L.) Wilczek), horsegram (Macrotyloma uniflorum (Lam.) Verdc.), cowpea (V. unguiculata (L.) Walp) and soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) are the warm season legumes. These grain legumes grown worldwide are prone to attack by a large number of plant pathogens, from fungi, bacteria, phytoplasmas, and viruses to nematodes and parasitic angiosperms, which resultin severe economic losses globally. Among these, fungi and viruses are the largest and perhaps the most important groups affecting all parts of the plant at all stages of growth (Table 16.1). In the present chapter the diseases of guar, cowpea, mothbean and horse gram have been reviewed