KEY POINTS | FIELD PEA TYPES | FIELD PEA HISTORY OF USE | WHY PLANT
FIELD PEA? | HOW FIELD PEA CAN BENEFIT THE FARMING OPERATION
SOUTHERN
JUNE 2018
SECTION 1
INTRODUCTION
FIELD PEA
1 introduction
Section 1 field pea
June 2018
introduction
Key points
• there are five field pea types, based on seed coat or kernel colour,
size and shape.
• Most (70–90%) field pea grown in Australia is for human consumption.
• More than 90% of Australian field pea grown are dun type, with 85% of these
now a ‘Kaspa’ type.
• two types of plant growth habit: conventional trailing types and semi-
leafless types with thicker stems and leaves modified into tendrils to produce
better standing ability.
• Field pea has a role in whole farming systems and crop rotations, as a c\
ash
crop, in weed control, in soil nitrogen fixation and for a disease break.
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1.1 Field pea types
Major field pea (Pisum sativum) types are based on seed coat or kernel (cotyledon)
colour, size and shape. Varieties range in growth habit from trailing to erect at
maturity. Trailing types can be difficult to harvest but the semi-leafless forms, with
leaves modified into tendrils, can have a better standing ability, aiding harvestability.
Field pea varieties grown in Australia can be divided into five groups:
• dun: greenish-brown (dun) coloured seed with yellow cotyledons. Traditionally
dimpled, but rounded types exist now. Used for human consumption and
stockfeed.
• White: cream-coloured seed with yellow cotyledons and rounded seed. Large
whites are used for human consumption (split and flour).
• Maple: brown, smooth or dimpled, mottled or speckled seed with yellow
cotyledons. Used for stockfeed and birdfeed.
• Blue: translucent seed coat, green cotyledons, rounded seed. Used for human
consumption. Seed shape and cotyledon colour suited to specialised uses
such as canning.
• Marrowfat: very large wrinkled blue seed with green cotyledons used
for canning.
1
The individual varieties have different coloured flowers ranging from all white to pink
and white, to purple and pink.
Photo 1: White flowers of PBA Pearl
A, a semi-leafless field pea.
Photo: Emma Leonard 2016
1 GRDC (2009) Field Peas: The Ute Guide, Southern region. GRDC https://grdc.com.au/resources-and-publications/all-publications/
publications/2009/04/field-peas-the-ute-guide
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June 2018
Photo 2: The purple flower of PBA Coogee A, a conventional leaf-type field pea.
Photo: Emma Leonard, 2016
Photo 3: The white and pink flower of Kaspa A, a semi-leafless field pea.
Photo: Felicity Pritchard
1.2 Field pea history of use
Field pea (Pisum sativum L.) has been an important grain legume crop for millennia;
seeds showing domesticated characteristics dating from at least 7,000 years ago
have been found in archaeological sites in Turkey. The seed is used both as animal
feed and for human consumption. It is closely related to the garden pea,\
the immature
pods and seeds of which are used throughout the world as green vegetables.
2
Australian field pea for human consumption is commonly used split for dahl, in pre-
prepared soups, fermented foods and noodles, as a snack food, whole for \
green
peas for pies, mushy peas and other dishes, and for sprouts.
Research, industry and breeding programs target market specifications for whole
and split grain size, shape and colour, whole grain milling properties and grain
canning qualities.
Australia produces mostly dun-type field pea (including ‘Kaspa’ types), with some
minor production of blue and white types.
Field pea is grown in the winter cropping areas of Australia. The
crop is sown late autumn to mid (late) winter and harvested in spring.
The southern region (South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania) grows
2 I Pritchard (2015) Growing field pea. Department of Agriculture and Fo\
od, Western Australia, https://agric.wa.gov.au/n/1755
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161,000 hectares and 204,000 tonnes (five-year average to 2016-17). 3
NSW planted 50,000 ha and produced 68,000 tonnes during the same period.
Most field pea are grown for grain, however, some varieties are also being used for
green/brown manure, forage or hay.
4
The high-quality seed is exported for human consumption in Asia and the sub-
continent. Between 2010 and 2014 about 60% of pulses produced in Australia were
exported, the majority used for human consumption.
5 Field pea comprises 10–15% of
the annual Australian pulse crop, with about 55% exported. 6
The Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre (AEGIC) estimated a total of 150,000
tonnes of field pea, valued at $72 million, was exported to South-East Asian markets
for human consumption (average over 4 years up to 2015), see Figure 1.
7
Australia is the major exporter of dun-type peas. Canada and France dominate world
export markets and produce mainly white peas. These specialist-type peas are not
grown widely in Australia.
8
Figure 1: Major export markets for Australian field pea.
Source: AEGIC, http://aegic.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Major-markets-for-Austra…
1.3 Why plant field pea?
Field pea offers flexibility and provides many benefit to growers. The crop can be
grown for grain, used as a green or brown manure crop, made into hay or silage, or
even grazed, depending on seasonal conditions and market prospects.
9
Field pea has a role in a well-considered rotation. They are a cash crop in their
own right and also a valuable part of the whole farming system, especially for weed
control, soil nitrogen fixation and for disease break. Field pea benefit from stubble
retention for erosion protection and moisture retention, giving the crop structural
support for the plant to climb on and greater standability at harvest. Seeding
3 ABARE (2017) Australian Crop Report, No. 183, September 2017, http://data.daff.gov.au/data/warehouse/aucrpd9abcc003/
aucrpd9aba_20170912_yGQh0/AustCropRrt20170912_v1.0.0.pdf
4 Pulse Australia (2010) Northern Region Field Pea Management Guide, https://sydney.edu.au/agriculture/documents/pbi/pbi_region_
north_field_pea_management_guide.pdf
5 AEGIC (2016) Pulses, http://aegic.org.au/about/australian-grains/pulses/
6 AEGIC (2016) Australian Grain Note: Pulses, http://aegic.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/AEGIC-Pulses.pdf
7 AEGIC (2016) Major markets for Australian field peas, http://aegic.org.au/major-markets-for-australian-field-peas/
8 I Pritchard (2015) Growing field pea. Department of Agriculture and Fo\
od, Western Australia, https://agric.wa.gov.au/n/1755
9 Pulse Australia (2010) Northern Region Field Pea Management Guide, https://sydney.edu.au/agriculture/documents/pbi/pbi_region_
north_field_pea_management_guide.pdf
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machinery used in no-till or minimum-tillage systems can handle stubble retention to
allow pulse crops to be sown after a cereal.
The benefits of growing pulses include:
• crop diversity in a rotation, which is important for continuous cropping systems;
• handling, or delaying the onset of, herbicide-resistant weeds, by varying
herbicide options and timings for weed control;
• providing a pest and disease break;
• spreading the timing of farm operations;
• spreading risk across commodities; and
• minimising the impact of increased nitrogen fertiliser and fuel costs.
10
In addition to these benefits and in comparison to the other pulses, field pea has
more post-emergent herbicide options and can be grown on a wider variety of
soil types.
11
1.4 How field pea can benefit the farming operation
Field pea is the most adaptable and least demanding of all the pulse cro\
ps. It is suited
to a wide range of soils, acid or alkaline pH, sodic soils, and both medium and low-
rainfall environments see Section 2 Planning and paddock preparation.
12 Field pea
has unique farming system advantages because it can be sown later than most other
annual crops. This allows weeds to germinate, with adequate time left for control by
either mechanical means, or with non-selective herbicides, before sowing.
The early maturity of some field pea varieties also makes it ideally suited to crop-
topping to prevent seedset of surviving in-crop weeds. The reduced reliance on
selective herbicides provides a very useful tool in the battle against herbicide-
resistant weeds. The late sowing and early harvest means the planting and harvest
windows of the cropping program as a whole can be widened, allowing more\
efficient
labour and machinery use.
Field pea provides substantial rotational benefits to subsequent cereal \
and oilseed
crops. The three main benefits are: weed management, a disease break for root and
foliar diseases and fixation of nitrogen in the soil.
13
10 Pulse Australia (2016) Southern Faba & Broad Bean – Best Management Practi\
ces Training Course, module 1-2016
11 Pulse Australia (2010) Northern Region Field Pea Management Guide, https://sydney.edu.au/agriculture/documents/pbi/pbi_region_
north_field_pea_management_guide.pdf
12 Pulse Australia (2010) Northern Region Field Pea Management Guide, https://sydney.edu.au/agriculture/documents/pbi/pbi_region_
north_field_pea_management_guide.pdf
13 I Pritchard (2015) Growing field pea. Department of Agriculture and Fo\
od, Western Australia, https://agric.wa.gov.au/n/1755
▶ VideO
Watch Video GctV 9: Southern Pulse
for the benefits of growing field pea
https://youtu.be/ZfbW40oP0Si
▶
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