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Chickpea

Seeding

Varieties

Chickpeas

Seeding

Varieties

Inoculation

Fertility

Diseases

Weed Control

Insects

Harvesting

Storage And Grading

Variety Testing Procedures

Registered chickpea varieties are entered into the Alberta Regional Variety Test Program. These trials are run annually across the province to collect yield and agronomic data. This data is then made publicly available through the Alberta Pulse Growers and the Alberta Seed Guide.

The data and descriptions include:

  • Varieties currently being tested.
  • Varieties previously tested, with sufficient data, are also listed as “fully tested varieties”.
  • When pedigreed seed of the older varieties becomes unavailable in Alberta, the variety will be removed.

Choosing a Chickpea Variety

Yield is an obvious consideration within a market class. However, other characteristics such as disease tolerance, maturity, or harvestability can quickly overshadow potential yield gains if the plant is limited in reaching its full potential.

Most of the current varieties have improved resistance to Ascochyta blight. Continued breeding efforts are underway to increase the levels of resistance to Ascochyta blight, decrease days to maturity, and improve seed quality.

Yield
  • A number of site years provides the best data only if these sites represent similar growing conditions.
  • Check data from local zone, industry, and regional trials. 
  • See links listed below.
Location
  • Use a combination of growing season precipitation and soil type – data from sites with abnormal precipitation the previous year may be suspect.
Height
  • Varieties vary from 40 inches through to 47 inches.
Standability
  • Standability considers vine length, amount of precipitation, wind damage, variety and soil nitrogen levels – all standability ratings are lower in dry years compared to wet years, even for the same variety.
  • If standability is important, choose varieties with ratings of 5.0 or less.
Maturity/days to flower
  • Maturity is influenced by variety, precipitation, temperature, days to flower and height.
  • Varieties flower between 50 to 56 days.
Seed Size, Shape, and seed coat color
  • Seed size influences both seeding rate and seeding cost.
  • In some cases, larger seed varieties produce higher yield, but the cost of seed should be considered in light of any potential yield increase (market type – including seed size, shape and seed or seed coat colour – is also important).
  • Seed shape – includes round, ram head, plump and angular.
  • Seed coat colour includes beige, light tan, and tan.
  • Seed weight can vary from 259 g/1000 to 435 g/1000.
Market
  • Kabuli or desi.
Disease resistance
  • Resistance to ascochyta blight.

Yield
  • A number of site years provides the best data only if these sites represent similar growing conditions.
  • Check data from local zone, industry, and regional trials. 
  • See links listed below.

Location
  • Use a combination of growing season precipitation and soil type – data from sites with abnormal precipitation the previous year may be suspect.

Height
  • Varieties vary from 40 inches through to 47 inches.

Standability
  • Standability considers vine length, amount of precipitation, wind damage, variety and soil nitrogen levels – all standability ratings are lower in dry years compared to wet years, even for the same variety.
  • If standability is important, choose varieties with ratings of 5.0 or less.

Maturity/

days to flower
  • Maturity is influenced by variety, precipitation, temperature, days to flower and height.
  • Varieties flower between 50 to 56 days.

Seed Size, Shape, and seed coat color
  • Seed size influences both seeding rate and seeding cost.
  • In some cases, larger seed varieties produce higher yield, but the cost of seed should be considered in light of any potential yield increase (market type – including seed size, shape and seed or seed coat colour – is also important).
  • Seed shape – includes round, ram head, plump and angular.
  • Seed coat colour includes beige, light tan, and tan.
  • Seed weight can vary from 259 g/1000 to 435 g/1000.

Market
  • Kabuli or desi.

Disease resistance
  • Resistance to ascochyta blight.
  • Resources
  • Links

Special thanks to Saskatchewan Pulse Growers.