ABSTRACT Climate scenarios for Central Europe forecast an increase in average temperature and a higher occurrence of drought and heavy rain events, calling for identifying crops able to tolerate weather extremes. Grass pea ( Lathyrus sativus L.) is a minor legume crop known for its ability to tolerate temperature extremes, drought and waterlogging as well as for its capability to grow in a wide range of soils. Hence, we investigated the suitability of grass pea in diverse environments across Germany. The objective was to identify agronomical and morphological traits associated with productivity parameters. We characterised 50 grass pea genotypes in six environments, evaluating two parameters related to plant development, six related to agronomy and plant morphology and five related to productivity. Higher grain yield was associated with a higher position of the first pod at plant stem, a total number of at least 20 pods per plant and a minimum of 40 seeds per plant. Genotypes with white flowers or white/blue flower wings had higher yields compared to those with blue flower wings. The study identified relevant breeding traits for selection and release of varieties adapted to Central European conditions.
Bubolz et al. (Sun,) studied this question.