Strengthen the cultivation of legumes

Dossier

Ackerbohnen (© Thünen-Institut/Michael Welling)

Legumes are essential for Organic Farming: they stimulate soil fertility, fix atmospheric nitrogen as an important nitrogen source for arable crops and grassland, increase the diversity of crop rotations,are the most important source of feed protein in organic livestock farming. Legumes could also have a positive effect in conventional cultivation, but their competitiveness compared to other crops is even lower here.

At the Thünen Institute, we are therefore developing cultivation concepts for legumes and are also testing species that have been little used to date – for example, vetches. We are currently testing mixed crop systems in particular and usually grow legumes together with a cereal partner. Advantages: higher yield performance and reliability, better weed suppression, lower disease and pest infestation.

In collaboration with the Julius Kühn Institute, we have summarized the scientific findings of the last ten years on the cultivation of legumes in the following meta-study:

Böhm H, Dauber J, Dehler M, Amthauer Gallardo DA, de Witte T, Fuß R, Höppner F, Langhof M, Rinke N, Rodemann B, Rühl G, Schittenhelm S (2020): Fruchtfolgen mit und ohne Leguminosen: ein Review. Journal für Kulturpflanzen 72(10-11):489-509.
doi.org/10.5073/JfK.2020.10-11.01

Ökologische Dienste der Leguminosen

Hülsenfrüchtler ­– so nennt man Leguminosen in der Umgangssprache – sind mit weltweit fast 20.000 Kultur- und Wildarten eine der artenreichsten Familien. Zu ihr gehören Bäume wie die Robinie, Sträucher wie der Besenginster, Lianen und dazu zahllose, prächtig blühende ein- und mehrjährige krautige Pflanzen. Für die Landwirtschaft sind sie beinahe Alleskönner, sie

  • schonen Ressourcen wie Boden, Wasser, fossile Rohstoffe
  • haben günstige Vorfrucht- und Fruchtfolgeeffekte
  • stärken die Biologische Vielfalt in der Agrarlandschaft
  • passen sich gut an den Klimawandel an
  • reduzieren Treibhausgasemissionen
  • eignen sich zur gesunden und nachhaltigen Humanernährung
  • sind wertvoller Rohstoff für vielfältige Zwecke.

Was Leguminosen auszeichnet, ist ihre Fähigkeit, Luftstickstoff im Boden zu binden. Der ökologische Landbau nutzt sie, um ohne mineralische Stickstoffdünger auszukommen. Blaue Lupine und Luzerne etwa haben  ausgedehntes Wurzelwerk, es mobilisiert sehr gut Nährstoffe im Boden und lockert ihn obendrein.

Projects

(©  Thünen-Institut/OL)
Winter vetch as preceding crop to maize and as silage for pigs

The object of the project is to test different varieties of the downy vetch (Vicia villosa), the Pannonian vetch (Vicia pannonica) and the Narbonne vetch (Vicia narbonensis) for their suitability for winter intercrop cultivation in Northern Germany, their preceding crop effect on maize and their suitability as high-protein, riboflavin-supplying feed for fattening pigs.
[Translate to English:] Andenlupine mit Mais im Gemengeanbau (©  Thünen-Institut/Herwart Böhm)
Optimization of intercropping for biomass production

Intercropping contributes to the biodiversification of cropping systems and often increases yield, as plants with different resource requirements are combined. We develop new intercropping systems for the Andean lupins with maize as well as for white lupins and oats for biomass production.
(©  Thünen-Institut/OL)
Small grain legumes in organic feeds for pigs and poultry

The use of early harvested alfalfa and red clover (small grain legumes) as valuable feedstuff for pigs and poultry is studied. Both legumes are processed either to whole crop silage or to dried leaf mass.
Versuchsanlage LupiBreed-Versuch im Jahr 2015 (©  Thünen-Institut/Vera Springer)
Making blue lupins more competitive

Blue lupines have due to their slow youth development only a low competitive ability against weeds. Lupin varieties with higher competitive ability could help to facilitate weed control. We want to develop a test system that detects the weed suppressive effect for Blue lupins, evaluates and helps to identify competitive strong breeding lines.
Coccinella septempunctata on Vicia faba. (©  Thünen-Institut/Georg Everwand)
RELEVANT

In RELEVANT, the effect of crop diversification with field bean and pea on the diversity of pollinators and epigeic predatory arthropods and the ecosystem services provided by those are quantified and assessed.
(©  Thünen-Institut / Jenny Fischer)
The future of grain legumes

The cultivation of legumes is declining in many European countries for many years, despite of a lot of positive properties, but they are usually economically not competitive with other crops. Therefore, cultivation systems with legumes need to be evaluated and developed further on.
(©  Thünen-Institut / Jenny Fischer)
Maize and beans in mixed cropping

In the future, the amount of on-farm or locally produced feedstuff should increase to ensure a sustainable protein supply for farm animals. In our project we analyze the potential of the mixed cropping of maize with runner or scarlet runner beans.
(©  Thünen-Institut / Herwart Böhm)
Peas, lupins and partners in field trials

Legumes are essential in the system of organic farming because of the nitrogen fixation and their function for the nutrient supply. They improve soil fertility, and provide a protein-rich feed stuff. In field trials with the focus of mixed cropping of grain legumes, especially the cultivation of blue lupins and peas we focused on yield optimisation and weed management. , We also evaluated the feed quality and their contribution to protein supply in organic animal husbandry.
(©  Thünen-Institut / Herwart Böhm)
Optimization of spring- and winter pea cultivation by intercropping and a reduced intensity of soil tillage

The agricultural advantages of mixed cultivation in low-input-systems are often demonstrated for the higher yield stability, a more effective weed suppression and a better use of the growth factors light, water and nutrients. We wanted to evaluate in the system of organic farming the mixed cropping especially under a simultaneous reduced intensity of soil cultivation in constricted crop rotations with grain legumes.