Earlier sowing and a boron spray more than doubles field pea yields
Nalia A, Mukherjee S, Ghosh A, Nath CP, Venugopalan VK
Crop Improvement
Field peas sown in your garden in late autumn rather than early winter face the same hidden pressure this study uncovered: flowering plants running short of soil moisture and the trace mineral boron at exactly the moment pollen needs both to function.
After rice is harvested in South Asia, farmers often plant field peas in the leftover moisture, but waiting too long means the soil dries out right when the plants are trying to flower and set pods. Researchers found that planting three to four weeks earlier, and spraying the leaves twice with a weak boron solution, kept the plants well-watered and dramatically improved how well pollen formed and germinated. The result was yields more than twice as high and profits that turned a near-loss into a solid return.
Key Findings
Early sowing (10-20 November) extended crop duration by 14-17 days and increased grain yield by 22-47% compared with late sowing by maintaining root-zone soil moisture above critical thresholds during flowering.
Two foliar sprays of 0.2% boric acid raised pollen viability by 15-16%, photosynthetic rate by 8-15%, and overall grain yield by 25%; yield response plateaued at 0.3% concentration.
The best treatment combination (20 November sowing + 0.2% boric acid) produced 1,557 kg/ha and a benefit-to-cost ratio of 2.12, versus 637 kg/ha and a ratio of 0.92 under late sowing with no boron.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Planting field peas earlier in the season and spraying leaves with a dilute boron solution can more than double grain yield in South Asian rice-fallow fields. The combination works by keeping soil moisture available during flowering and supporting pollen health, both of which collapse under late planting.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Optimizing sowing time and foliar boron application improves soil moisture use, physiological efficiency, and yield stability of field pea (Pisum sativum L.) in rainfed rice-fallow systems.
Rice fallow agroecosystems across South Asia provides a major opportunity for sustainable pulse crop-based intensification. However, productivity of post-rice crops are constrained by delayed sowin...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
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