Seed Yield, Crude Protein and Mineral Nutrients of Lentil Genotypes Evaluated across Diverse Environments under Organic and Conventional Farming

Abstract

Lentil is an important legume crop for human and animal dietary needs due to its high nutritional value. The effect of genotype and growing environment was studied on seed yield (SY), crude protein (CP) and mineral nutrients (macro and micronutrients) of five lentil genotypes grown at four diverse locations for two consecutive years under organic and conventional farming. The location within each year was considered as a separate environment (E). Data were subjected to over environment two-way analysis of variance, while a genotype (G) plus genotype × environment (GGE) biplot analysis was performed. Our results indicated the E as the main source of variation (62.3–99.8%) for SY, CP and macronutrients for both farming systems, while for micronutrients it was either the E or the G × E interaction. Different environments were identified as ideal for the parameters studied: E6 (Larissa/Central Greece/2020) produced the higher CP values (organic: 32.0%, conventional: 27.5%) and showed the highest discriminating ability that was attributed to the lowest precipitation during the crucial period of pod filling. E7 (Thessaloniki/Central Macedonia/2020) and E8 (Orestiada/Thrace/2020) had fertile soils and ample soil moisture and were the most discriminating for high micronutrient content under both farming systems. Location Orestiada showed the highest SY for both organic (1.87–2.28 t ha−1) and conventional farming (1.56–2.89 t ha−1) regardless the year of cultivation and is proposed as an ideal location for lentil cultivation or for breeding for high SY. Genotypes explained a low percentage of the total variability; however, two promising genotypes were identified. Cultivar “Samos” demonstrated a wide adaptation capacity exhibiting stable and high SY under both organic and conventional farming, while the red lentil population “03-24L” showed very high level of seed CP, Fe and Mn contents regardless E or farming system. This genetic material could be further exploited as parental material aiming to develop lentil varieties that could be utilized as “functional” food or consist of a significant feed ingredient.

Lentil Cultivar Evaluation in Diverse Organic Mediterranean Environments

“…This supports the hypothesis that the nitrogen-fixing ability of lentil and other legumes by Rhizobium bacteria makes their CP relatively stable across environments [69]. Recent comparisons between organic and conventional environments have shown higher CP in organic farming (organic: 32.0%, conventional: 27.5%), arguing that the organic environments potentially lead to higher CP due to lower yields [21]. Most researchers have also reported a high negative relationship between CP and SY [68,70].…”

“…However, drought caused the average yield of lentils to decline to 1.17 t h −1 [20]. Lentil is a versatile crop, thriving in various climates and soils without requiring nitrogen fertilizers due to its ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen (N 2 ) [21,22]. However, the success of lentil cultivation in Greece is influenced by a combination of edaphic (soil-related) and climatic conditions [23].…”

Nutritional, chemical, and antioxidant screening of selected varieties of lentils (Lens culinaris spp.) from organic and conventional agriculture

“…Here, analysis of variance proved that the nutritional profile was not correlated with the type of cultivation (organic or conventional farming), presenting, however, a moderate and weak correlation between the variety and the concentration of carbohydrates and starch, and with moisture, respectively (Table 8). Tziouvalekas and colleagues 32 evaluated the seed yield, crude protein, and mineral nutrients of different lentil genotypes across diverse environments under organic and conventional farming. Their results showed a high influence of different environmental features on these parameters, this being the main source of micronutrient variance.…”

Biochemical analyses in the ICARDA collection of unique dried materials of lentils

“…Plant proteins serve as the basis for sustainable food production and thus, secure our future [11]. When combined with rice, wheat, or other cereal grains high in sulfur-containing amino acids, lentil proteins can complete the daily essential amino acid requirements of people in developing countries and solve their problem of the need to consume animal proteins [12][13]. According to Tziouvalekas et.al, Dhull protein content in lentil seeds varies between 15.9% to 31.4%, carbohydrates between 43.4% to 74.9%, fat between 0.3% to 3.5%, total fiber between 5.1% to 26.6%, and ash between 2.2-6.4%.…”