ARS | Publication request: Showy partridge pea [Chamaecrista fasciculate (Michx.) Greene] with potential for cultivation as a multi-functional species in the United States.

Submitted to: Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: May 14, 2012
Publication Date: July 18, 2012
Citation: Morris, J.B. 2012. Showy partridge pea [Chamaecrista fasciculate (Michx.) Greene] with potential for cultivation as a multi-functional species in the United States. Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution. 59:1577-1581.

Interpretive Summary: Partridge pea is used in the U.S. for cover cropping, ornate flowers in native gardens, honey crop, and as an annual reseeding bean for restoration and conservation plantings. Thirty six accessions are conserved at the Plant Genetic Resources Conservation Unit in Griffin, GA. Limited information for producing partridge pea in Georgia is known. Variability for branching and foliage characteristics, plant height, plant width, days to maturity, and seed number occurred. Partridge pea produced quality plants and more than 5,000 seeds at Griffin indicating that partridge pea has potential for use in the southeastern U.S.

Technical Abstract: Partridge pea, Chamaecrista fasciculata is used in the U.S. for cover cropping, ornate flowers in native gardens, honey crop, and as an annual reseeding bean for restoration and conservation plantings. The USDA, ARS, PGRCU conserves 36 accessions originating from the states of Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, New Jersey, Texas, and some Louisiana parishes. Partridge pea accessions were trans- planted to the field in Griffin, GA in early May, 2006 and 2011. At 50% maturity, 29 accessions were characterized for phenotypic, phenological, and reproductive traits during the regeneration cycles. High quality plants regenerated from all accessions produced 103 to more than 5,000 total seeds. Partridge pea can be successfully regenerated in Griffin, GA. Coefficients of variation revealed considerable variability among accessions for branching and foliage. Sufficient variation among partridge pea accessions exists for plant height, plant width, and seed number for the development of superior cultivars using breeding programs. Cluster analysis separated these partridge pea accessions into 3 groups with one outlier based on low, intermediate, and high seed numbers produced.