Potential
So far little has been done to exploit ricebean's potential: there are several features that need attention from breeders before it could be widely adopted. Most varieties are highly photoperiod sensitive, and so when grown in the subtropics are late flowering and show strong vegetative growth. Their twining habit makes them very suitable for use as intercrops with such species as maize, sorghum and possibly some of the minor millet species, which can provide support, but also makes them difficult to harvest. Many of the current varieties are susceptible to shattering, and show high levels of hard seededness. Some crop improvement work has been carried out on ricebean in India, but not in Nepal. However, the use of ricebean as a green manure crop was studied in a series of field experiments in Nepal, and this revealed that it is one of the best legumes for the purpose due to high biomass production over a short period of time, is easy to incorporate into the soil, and decomposes rapidly.
Read more about this topic: Vigna Umbellata
Famous quotes containing the word potential:
“There is a potential 4-6 percentage point net gain for the President [George Bush] by replacing Dan Quayle on the ticket with someone of neutral stature.”
—Mary Matalin, U.S. Republican political advisor, author, and James Carville b. 1946, U.S. Democratic political advisor, author. All’s Fair: Love, War, and Running for President, p. 205, Random House (1994)
“The traditional American husband and father had the responsibilities—and the privileges—of playing the role of primary provider. Sharing that role is not easy. To yield exclusive access to the role is to surrender some of the potential for fulfilling the hero fantasy—a fantasy that appeals to us all. The loss is far from trivial.”
—Faye J. Crosby (20th century)
“Silence is as full of potential wisdom and wit as the unhewn marble of great sculpture. The silent bear no witness against themselves.”
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)