BY STAN BLADE, P.Ag.
FROM LAB
TO FIELD
Fingeron thepulse
THIS YEAR IS A SPECIAL ONE. THE
68th United Nations General Assembly de-
clared 2016 the International Year of Pulses
(IYOP). In Western Canada, the benefits
of growing peas, dry beans, faba beans,
chickpeas and lentils are common knowl-
edge. There are few producers who do not
appreciate the role that these crops play in
nitrogen fixation, rotational reduction of
crop disease and pest cycles, seeding/har-
vest scheduling, and marketing flexibility.
The Canadian pulse industry is taking
full advantage of the IYOP to raise the
profile of pulse products with consumers.
There will be a wide array of events to
remind people of the health benefits of
pulses, including their role in addressing
obesity and their capacity to prevent and
help manage chronic diseases, such as
cancer, coronary conditions and diabetes.
Pulse crops are used across the globe as a
significant source of plant-based proteins
and amino acids.
IYOP 2016 has brought back some great
memories of how important pulse crops
are across the world, and how much I have
learned about research and development
through my association with this group of
crops.
NORTH AMERICA
During my own time breeding field peas
it was clear that genetic adaptation is the
key to introducing a new crop into our
production systems. After three decades,
we have excellent material adapted to our
conditions. In addition to varietal develop-
ment, our zero-tillage seeders and granular
inoculant provided the tools to find a good
fit for pulse crops within our prairie crop
production cycle. Granular inoculant was
adopted because of the need for effective-
ness, convenience and seeding efficiency.
AUSTRALIA
In the mid-1990s, the Commonwealth
Scientific and Industrial Research Or-
ganisation lab in Australia was the first
large transgenic field pea program being
used to develop new pea lines that were
resistant to pea weevils. In the lab there
was great excitement because a gene had
been identified in beans that was known to
stop weevils by creating an alpha-amylase
inhibitor. The presence of this protective
protein prevented weevils from attack-
ing the beans. The new pea cultivar was
grown but, in feeding trials, both pigs and
chickens showed problems with digesting
the new pea ration. The takeaway here is
that no matter what great idea is possible
through technology, there must always be
openness to unexpected consequences.
SOUTH AMERICA
Near Machu Picchu, in Peru’s Sacred
Valley, there are field pea and lupin plots
in farmers’ fields at altitudes approaching
3,800 metres above sea level. Those fields
were made more interesting by learn-
ing about Moray, an archaeological site
between the Sacred Valley and Cuzco con-
sisting of a circular set of terraces set deep
into a mountain ridge. Inca experts have
many theories about this location, but most
of them suggest that this was a kind of lab-
oratory to test how different crops would
perform at different temperatures. The idea
that the Incas were doing their own crop
testing and selection in a dedicated site in
the middle of the Andes is remarkable.
AFRICA
The cropping systems across Africa have
always amazed me, going back to my
initial visit in the early 1980s. Wheth-
er in the rain forest or the savannah,
farmers have created elegant systems
where several crops are grown togeth-
er. It is not unexpected to have cereals,
pulses (peanut, cowpea, etc.), roots and
tubers, and specialty crops all growing in
the same field. My research focused on
breeding and selecting cowpea (a pulse
crop indigenous to Africa used by tens of
millions as a protein source) within these
intercropping systems. It makes a person
wonder about the role of intercropping in
Western Canada. Forage crops are a mix
of species, and many people try to inter-
crop cereals and pulses for silage (we did
indeterminate field pea-barley combi-
nations in Alberta in the late 1990s). I
believe that there will be a time when
intercropping becomes a useful produc-
tion system in the Prairies.
My experience with pulse crops has
provided a number of insights about the
research process, including what works
and what doesn’t. Pulse crops play an
incredibly important role for producers and
consumers across the globe. I am optimis-
tic that pulse crops will continue to be an
integral component of global farming and
food systems. The IYOP will provide an
opportunity to send that message around
the world.
Stan Blade, PhD, is dean of the Faculty of
Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences
at the University of Alberta.
Spring
2016
Grains
West
44
CELEBRATINGAGSUCCESS DUE TOBETTER FARMPRACTICES
