Seed Yield and Quality of Sword Bean (Canavalia gladiata (Jacq.) DC.) Produced in Poland

Abstract

Sword bean (Canavalia gladiata (Jacq.) DC.), also named Jack bean or beach bean, originates from India and China. The crop has been completely unknown in Poland and other Central European countries. Two Chinese cultivars: early and late, were produced in Western Poland. During the vegetation period, additional watering, staking and strong chemical control against aphids and bean weevils were applied. In the field, plant emergence rates, blooming period, number of seeds per pod and total seed yield were evaluated. In the laboratory 1000 seed weight, seed germination, vigour and water absorbing capacity were evaluated. Additionally, variability of seed size was recorded. The measurement showed that the most stable for seed was width and the least - length. Both cultivars had good emergence rates in the field - over 60%. Only the early cultivar produced germinating seeds when grown in Poland, whereas the late one produced soft and immature seeds of the size of the wheat grain. The onset of blooming for the early and late cultivars were at the end of June and middle of August, respectively. On average, one pod had 7.3 seeds. The early cultivar gave good seed yield - 2067 kg ha^-1. The germination rate of the produced seeds was over 90%. The mean germination time was shorter at 25 °C than at 15 °C. Water absorption capacity curves, although different for the 1 hour time point, were basically the same for both Chinese and Polish seeds. The total proteins content for both cultivars was almost 25%. In the climatic conditions of Western Poland, it was possible to produce high amounts of well-germinating seeds of the early sword bean cultivar in the field.