Due to its wide adaptability, chickpea is considered as an important crop in arid, semi-arid and in marginal lands. Most important factors which limit yield of chickpea are short length of physiological growth period and susceptibility to cold and diseases, especially Ascochyta rabie. Releasing a chickpea cultivar with high yield and good characteristics such as cold tolerance, resistance to disease (Ascochyta rabie), erect growth habit and early maturity has been a most important goal in Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center of Neishabour, Iran. Thus, in order to release a chickpea cultivar suitable for autumn-winter cultivation, more than 300 genotypes from ICARDA (including ILC3279), Italy and some Iranian landraces were examined during an eight year period starting from 1990. In different nurseries, preliminary and advanced yield trails, ILC3279 produced the highest yield and exhibited good agronomic characteristics, therefore this genotype and two other were selected as the superior genotypes. In adaptability and other agronomic and physiological trails, to find the best planting date, plant density and physiological characteristics, ILC3279 was found to be the most superior genotype for releasing. It was finally registered officially in Iran with the name of Binaloud as a new chickpea cultivar.
)
