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MADE POSSIBLE BY
THE MAIZE TRUST
21
B Y R
Pigeon pea is a pulse crop that is able to tolerate harsh conditions
where other crops such as maize fail. Its ability to withstand drought
makes it an ideal crop for smallholder farming. It has a deep tap-
root system whereby it can withdraw water and nutrients from the
secondary level of the soil profile and it helps the plants to survive
during periods of water deficit. Similar to most leguminous crops,
pigeon pea has root nodules and it helps improve soil quality by
atmospheric nitrogen fixation. Due to this, pigeon pea is cultivated in
intercropping systems with maize and sorghum leading to reduced
need for commercial nitrogen and phosphorus fertilisers.
Neglected and underutilised crops, such as pigeon pea, could
play a prominent role in sustaining the livelihood of poor rural African
populations by increasing food availability, including protein uptake.
In recent years, there has been a continuous and increasing demand
for nutritional foods rich in proteins, vitamins and essential minerals.
Pigeon pea is among the crops rich in proteins and it has about 18% to
26% with some wild types having protein content of 30% and above.
It is also a rich source of minerals such as potassium, phosphorus,
calcium, magnesium, sodium and zinc. Generally, pigeon pea contains
most of the minerals, as compared to other food legumes such as
cowpea and chickpea (
Table 1
).
CONSUMPTION
It can be consumed as dry or green seeds and green pods. In South
Africa, it is mainly prepared as a snack, soup, mixed with samp, dahl,
or as porridge eaten with or without meat. In India and other African
areas, it is largely used in diets to supplement cereals and tubers,
which are protein deficient. Moreover, its high nutritional value has
also made it a good source of fodder. It provides primary or sup-
plementary high-quality forage at a time when other forages are less
productive. There are reports of improved performance of poultry
fed with pigeon pea.
The dry leaves, the left-over pods and milling products form feed for
livestock. This is because pigeon pea plants produce a high biomass and
provide edible forage or grazing vegetation in dry seasons. On the other
hand, the crop has pharmaceutical benefits. The green leaves and pods
are used for medicinal purposes. Extracts from the leaves are rich in anti-
oxidants and widely used in traditional medicine to treat several diseases.
Extracts from the roots are used as a relief for fever and as an anthelmin-
thic. Fresh seeds are believed to help problems of urinary systems in males
while immature seeds are recommended for treatment of kidney problems.
GENETIC DIVERSITY
Unlike other legumes, the crop has been largely neglected by science.
Generally, in Africa, farmers currently grow unimproved and hetero-
geneous landraces in seed mixtures that hold distinctive and diver-
gent genetic features. For example, the perennial pigeon pea types
provide material for fuel wood, basket weaving, and roofing in African
villages. Thus far, the full genetic diversity of the crop remains largely
unexploited in Africa. Hence, only farm level selection has been prac-
ticed wherein existing landraces are not intensively evaluated and
their seeds multiplied for production. There are limited studies done
on pigeon pea in South Africa targeted at breeding of the crop and
consequently improving varieties in the major growing areas of the
country such as Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.
Strategic collection, characterisation and preservation of genetic re-
sources are major components in plant breeding programmes, espe-
cially with new and under-utilised crops. This will help for targeted
breeding involving various characteristics and for germplasm con-
servation. It will also contribute to alleviation of poverty, food and
nutrition insecurity. This is because the world population growth was
projected to increase to 10 billion by the year 2050.
HIGH DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION
Furthermore, there is high demand of pulse production worldwide
including countries like India where pulses are a major staple food.
Low yields reported in many regions calls for further improvement. For
instance, yields of 0,5 tons to 0,1 tons were reported in sub-Saharan
Africa landraces as compared to the Malawian varieties, which yielded
within a range of 2,7 t/ha to 3 t/ha. Careful selection and classification
of the pigeon pea germplasm is imperative for further use using quali-
tative and quantitative traits as well as nutritional value.