an information on an upcoming fieldwalk
While not as popular and common on store shelves in Australia, pigeonpea is common place and in-demand in much of the world. It is the main ingredient in “dal”, a staple on the table for millions of people around the world. 1 Tests have revealed promising results as a hardy summer crop for many producers in Aussie conditions. Pigeon pea has shown potential in areas where mungbeans and soybeans won’t grow. 1
As of the end of July, DAF had evaluated four sites across central and southern Queensland growing new experimental lines of pigeonpea. The results from these GDRC funded sites found high grain yield, quick maturity, short height and a short flowering window. They also found that the grains were easily harvested using existing equipment. The resulting findings have led to further research and development into commercializing pigeonpea as a crop for our region. 1
The demand for pulses is high already; around 22 million tons in 2020, it is expected to grow to 36 million tons by 2035.1 High demand in India for pigeonpea in India has seen import needs unmet making room for more production. In addition to increased market viability pigeonpea offers a potential alternative for summer pulses and is a nitrogen fixer and is beneficial for carbon sequestering.
While the planting window is a long way off now it is worth considering pigeonpea for future planting. GDRC is hosting a walkthrough on Tuesday the 11th of March in Condamine. Follow the link below to learn more about this upcoming event including how to RSVP.
Click here to learn more about the Condamine Pigeonpea Fieldwalk
1: Winter, Bruce. Grains Research and Development Corporation. Pigeonpea: a new dryland summer pulse for northern region farming systems. https://grdc.com.au/resources-and-publications/grdc-update-papers/tab-content/grdc-update-papers/2024/07/pigeonpea-a-new-dryland-summer-pulse-for-northern-region-farming-systems. July 30th 2024
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