Plastochron, phenology, and production of green pea in different growing seasons

ABSTRACT Pisum sativum L. is a multi-purpose crop. The duration of its vegetative and reproductive periods is determined by a combination of temperature and humidity and genotype response to these conditions. To minimize the loss of productivity due to adverse conditions in sensitive periods of the crop, we evaluated the phenological development and production of Pisum sativum L. in different growing seasons. We used a randomized block design, and the experiments were conducted across five growing seasons, with four replications and eight plants per experimental unit. The variables analyzed were as follows: plastochron, number of days to start flowering, full flowering, and beginning of harvest, the accumulated thermal sum to start flowering, full flowering, and beginning of harvest, and the number of pods, pod mass, and total productivity per unit area. The analysis of variance was performed, and the mean values of the data were compared using the Scott-Knott test. Principal component analysis was also performed from Pearson’s correlation matrix of phenological and production variables. In seasons 1, 4, and 5, the plants reached full flowering earlier, and the pod mass was considerably lower, resulting in lower yields. Seasons 2 and 3 were the most productive and showed lower results for plastochron, less thermal sum until full flowering, and a shorter photoperiod, which, combined with low temperatures during the growing season, resulted in a longer cultivation cycle.