Case study reports · 30. August 2018

Legumes are "smart" plants because they can utilize nitrogen from the atmosphere to cover their nutritional needs. Legumes do not need nitrogen fertilization as they form symbiotic relationships with rhizobia bacteria. Non-legume crops however need synthetic fertilizers to replenish the nitrogen removed from the soil. Case Study 21 at the AUA uses beans and grafting technique to obtain efficient rootstock/scion genotypes in terms of symbiotic nitrogen fixation and GHG emissions.

Case study reports · 12. February 2018

In this case study we will set up field trials of Fava beans and French beans to assess the agronomic performance of heritage varieties in comparison to modern ones. The nutritional quality of the crops will be analysed. During the flowering period we will quantify visitation of the different varieties by pollinating insects and relate this to the production of floral volatile chemicals that may be responsible for attracting them and the quality of the resources that are provided in return.