The potential of breeding perennial grain legumes for swedish climates : a literature study and a pilot experiment on polyploidy

Abstract: In consideration of both the struggle facing smallholders and rural societies in Sweden and the environmental crisis, the potential of breeding and cultivation of perennial legumes in Sweden has been examined. The essay is comprised of a literature study and a pilot experiment. In the literature study, focus have been given to pea vetch, Vicia pisiformis L., Siberian pea shrub, Caragana arborescens Lam., thicket bean, Phaseolus polystachios L. and some species of lupins, Lupinus sp. Additionally, the potential of using polyploidization and the prospects of achieve interspecific hybridization with the aim of increasing seed size and yield have been examined. In conclusion, the most promising path to a perennial legume crop for large parts of Sweden appears to be lupin species of the Platycarpos subgenus, i.e. hybrids between L. mutabilis Sweet. and either L. polyphyllus Lindl. or L. perennis L. In the pilot experiment, solutions containing either 0,1% or 0,2% colchicine plus 0,2% dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) were applied to lateral buds of Caragana arborescens, as well as to apical meristem of Vicia pisiformis, in an attempt at inducing tetraploidity. However, no differences between treated plants and the control could be identified.