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Excessive postharvest losses.<br />
Postharvest mishandling may cause seed losses to reach 20%.<br />
Ascochyta Blight<br />
209<br />
Although present in Lebanon, ascochyta blight is not a serious problem on spring<br />
chickpeas. In the major chickpea-gro wing area, the Beqa'a Valley, low relative<br />
humidity during the spring season does not favor the occurrence and spread of<br />
the disease. Lebanese local cultivars tested by ICARDA in the Terbol Research<br />
Station were highly susceptible to ascochyta blight. This may be the main reason<br />
for not growing chickpeas as a winter crop since most Lebanese local cultivars<br />
are fairly tolerant to the cold weather prevailing in the valley during the winter<br />
season.<br />
A detailed study on faba bean, chickpea and lentil seed health testing by Khan<br />
(1979) at the American University of Beirut was made on 15 seed samples<br />
collected from six different areas in Lebanon. The study showed that -scochyta<br />
blight was not found on any of the chickpea sarnples. However, Ascochyta spp.<br />
isolates were found on faba beans (Vicia faba) and lentils (Lens culinaris). In<br />
faba beans, the incidence was 40, 5, and 5% on seed coat, embryo and cotyledons,<br />
respectively.<br />
Winter Sowing<br />
Winter chickpeas have a great potential in Lebanon considering the expected<br />
increase in yield level due to the extension of the growing season and the elimination<br />
or minimization of the moisture stress during flowering and pod filling. In<br />
light of the insufficient local production to satisfy market demand and high<br />
prices of chickpea, more hectarage will be converted to chickpeas if they are<br />
sown in winter. The magnitude of this change will depend to a great extent on the<br />
improvement made to eliminate or minimize the other constraints of production<br />
mentioned earlier. However, priorities should be given to mechanize planting and<br />
harvesting, weed control, fertilization and better seedbed preparation.<br />
In cooperation bewtween ICARDA and the Faculty of Agricultural and Food<br />
Sciences, American University of Beirut (FAFS-AUB), work on winter sowing of<br />
chickpeas in Lebanon is already under way at Terbol Research Station and at the<br />
Agricultural Research and Education Center (AREC) of the American University<br />
of Beirut. Lebanese local cultivars are being compared with two promising<br />
kabuli chickpea accessions (ILC 482 and 484) in large replicated plots at the<br />
AREC. These accessions are high yielding, resistant to ascochyta blight and cold<br />
tolerant. In addition, a winter chickpea trial (CIYT-W) is being evaluated this