Adaptability of Guar in New Mexico.

With increasing climatic variability, water scarcity is becoming a major concern in arid and semi-arid regions of the world including New Mexico, which has threatened sustainability of agriculture and rural economy in the region. Guar or clusterbean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba L.) is a high value legume crop that has a high potential to adapt to the local farming system and boost the local economies. Guar can tolerate high temperatures and dry conditions prevailing in arid and semi-arid climates such as in New Mexico. Guar can be grown for fresh pods for vegetables, or for protein-rich high quality forage for animals or for seed to produce guar gum. Guar gum is obtained from guar seed endosperm which is mainly galactomannan polysaccharide giving the high viscosity properties and has been widely used in various food industry and cosmetics. More recently, use of guar gum for ‘fracking’, where combination of horizontal well drilling and hydraulic fracturing have enabled extraction of previously un-retrievable hydrocarbons from shale formations, has revolutionized natural gas industry.  This newly found use of guar gum in oil drilling has resulted in unprecedented increase in demand for guar gum by the US oil industry making the US the biggest user of the guar gum in the world. The objective of this preliminary study was to evaluate several genotypes collected from various parts of the world through USDA germplasm for their adaptability in southern NM. Results will be presented on growth and seed yield and yield attributing characteristics of the tested genotypes. Results indicate that guar could grow and adapt well in the local cropping systems.