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Solar radiation interception and utilization by chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) crops in northern Syria

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

G. Hughes
Affiliation:
Edinburgh School of Agriculture, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JG, Scotland
J. D. H. Keatinge
Affiliation:
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria
P. J. M. Cooper
Affiliation:
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria
N. F. Dee
Affiliation:
Edinburgh School of Agriculture, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 3JG, Scotland

Summary

An analysis of chickpea experiments carried out in northern Syria during the 1980–1 and 1981–2 growing seasons showed that both intercepted solar radiation and its rate of conversion to dry matter were variable components of dry-matter production. Among the sources of variation in the experiments, the most important factor affecting both interception and utilization of solar radiation was site. Winter planting also led to increased solar radiation interception and utilization. Used in conjunction with chickpea lines resistant to blight, winter planting seems likely to lead to increased productivity. In higher rainfall areas, where the crop is usually grown, such an increase would be of commercial significance. In drier areas, winter planting would enable the cultivation of chickpea as a subsistence crop.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1987

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