Enhancing Production of Pulses in the US Delmarva Region to Improve Bio-Diversity, Food Security, and Soil Health.

Cropping in the Delaware in the US Delmarva Peninsula, the eastern shore of Maryland and Virginia and the whole state of Delaware, is constrained by drought, elevated temperature and, crop adaptability tho these environmental conditions. This study aimed at introducing and enhancing the production of elite cultivars of pigeon pea, mung bean, and black gram as specialty crops in to the Delmarva region, where their production can be profitable in the region without using fertilizers while enhancing soil health and environmental quality. Our study’s objectives included developing pigeon pea, mung bean, and black gram elite genotypes for high yields, desirable agronomic traits and nutritional values; developing ecologically sound IPM effective BNF practices and stratigies; determining production costs and profits of the new specialty crops; and producing extension materials on production practices for the Delmarva region. Our procedures comprised multi-locational field trials with three different planting dates. Drought and heat stress tolerance were also evaluated under rain-out shelters; IPM including insecticides spray treatments; cookability, and nutritional qualities were determined in the laboratory; Biological Nitrogen Fixation studies using local and elite bradyrhizobia and rhizobia strains were evaluated in yield expermentations, with and without nitrogen fertilization, when grown after the various pulse crops. Our results show a great potential of introducing these pulse crops as stress-tolerant crops in the Delmarva agrosystem thus, improving Delmarva biodiversity, agro-sustainability, food security, socio-economic, and well-being of local small scale farmers.