Biomass production and related characters in the core collection of Pisum germplasm

Retention of residue on the soil surface following harvest is an effective method of reducing soil erosion from both wind and water. The pea crop prod uces small amounts of residue to effectively reduce soil erosion. Severe er osion occurs in pea production areas such as the Palouse Region of the US P acific Northwest (PNW) when low residue crops such as spring pea or lentil are followed by fall-sown wheat. The current study was conducted to determi ne the range of total aboveground biomass (TAB), seed yield, and straw (res idue) production from the plant identification (PI) accessions that compris e the core collection of Pisum germplasm. In addition, the potential for in creasing seed yield and straw production simultaneously was evaluated. Thre e hundred and ninety PI accessions were screened in the field in 1996 and 1 997. The variation for TAB, seed yield and straw production among the PI ac cessions exceeded that of the controls both years. Seed yield was positivel y correlated with straw production (r = 0.81, p < 0.01) indicating that see d and straw production can be increased simultaneously through positive sel ection for both traits. Significant favorable variation is present among ac cessions in the USDA core collection of Pisum germplasm which could be used to increase both seed yield and total biomass production of adapted breedi ng lines.