Potential of Wild Yellow Lupin from Northwestern Spain

Abstract

Wild yellow lupin (Lupinus luteus L.) is one of the three species of the genus Lupinus that grows naturally in Galicia (northwestern Spain). In this dairy region imported lupin is widely used as a cheap plant‐derived protein for livestock feed. Our objectives were to investigate variation in yellow lupin accessions from northwestern Spain, determine the relationships among them, and identify useful accessions for production and breeding. Fifty wild accessions and one Portuguese landrace were evaluated for 21 characteristics under winter Mediterranean conditions in northwestern Spain in 2001 and 2002. Accessions showed significant differences for 14 of 21 traits. Accession × environment interaction was significant for seed width and plant height. Based on multivariate analyses, 90% of the accessions grouped together indicating that genetic variation for most studied characters is limited in this germplasm. In general, accessions were late in flowering and maturity, with high levels of vegetative development, small and impermeable seeds, and dehiscent pods. However three accessions (LUP‐0077, LUP‐0080, and LUP‐0125) with high seed yield, water permeability, and relatively large pods and seeds may have potential for seed production and improvement of agronomic characteristics. In addition, LUP‐0196 produced high green mass and could be used for forage production in high rainfall cool‐temperate environments with long growing season conditions.

Identification of promising accessions of wild Lupinus hispanicus Boiss. et Reut. from northwestern Spain

“…hispanicus populations have a height average of 73.9 cms and they produce 159 g of green biomass and 14.2 g of dry biomass (Table 2). These parameters are lower than that found in a collection of yellow lupin (L. luteus) population of northwestern Spain (Lema and Lindner 2010), with an average of 91.6 cm and 194 and 19.1 g of green and dry biomass, respectively.…”

“…Arrieta et al (1993) found an average of 211 days to first flower in L. hispanicus populations from west central of Spain and Cowling et al (1998) did not find early flowering types in this species. The growing cycle of L. hispanicus is similar to that of yellow lupin (L. luteus) collected in the same region and characterized by Lema and Lindner (2010). High vernalization requirements and small and impermeable seeds maybe the cause of late flowering and maturity of the accessions.…”

“…The average of water permeable seed coat in L. hispanicus was 36%, with a minimum of 13 and a maximum of 58%. The average of the populations is higher than that observed by Arrieta et al (1994) in the subspecies hispanicus with an average of 4% and higher than the average of L. luteus with an average of 33 % (Lema and Lindner 2010). This can be considered an essential trait for domestication, which could be easily improved by selection, since there is significant variability for this trait in the collection and the trait is controlled by a single gene (Arrieta et al 1994).…”

“…Cultivation of lupins as a source of plant proteins for human consumption and livestock production can be an alternative to soybean and in this way, the risk associated to the global trade of soybean and the dependence of the European Union on the imported soybean could be reduced (Abraham et al 2019). They could be grown for direct grazing or as winter forage crop for silage, intercropped with maize, in areas with high rainfall and elevation and cool-temperate conditions (Lema and Lindner 2010). Moreover, cultivation of lupins can help in improving soil fertility and break disease cycles in crop rotation under rainy Mediterranean climatic conditions and poor acid soils (Lopez-Bellido and Fuentes 1986).…”

Delve into the potential of wild populations of Lupinus hispanicus

“…Arrieta et al (1993) found an average of 211 days to first flower in L. hispanicus populations from west central of Spain and Cowling et al (1998) did not find early flowering types in this species. The growing cycle of L. hispanicus is similar to that of yellow lupin (L. luteus) collected in the same region and characterized by Lema and Lindner (2010). High vernalization requirements and small and impermeable seeds maybe the cause of late flowering and maturity of the accessions.…”