How nitrogen nutrition and water availability during grain filling shape chickpea grain weight and quality: the physiological basis

The Córdoba Chickpea Cluster, represented by the nonprofit Asociación Civil Clúster de Garbanzos Córdoba, is leading this scientific research project in partnership with INTA and CONICET. The goal is to generate original knowledge on how nitrogen nutrition and water stress interact during chickpea grain filling, and how that interaction determines yield and final grain quality. Córdoba is Argentina's leading chickpea producer, and the crop, increasingly important in healthy diets worldwide thanks to its high protein content, faces a structural challenge: "terminal drought" during the reproductive stage, which is especially critical in the subtropical rain-fed environments where it is grown.

The trials will run on a cluster member's farm in Sinsacate over two consecutive growing seasons, using two widely planted commercial cultivars in a factorial design: two levels of water availability (drip irrigation vs. rain-fed from the start of grain filling) by two levels of nitrogen fertilization (control vs. 600 kg N/ha split across three applications). The team will measure ecophysiological and biochemical variables in the field and the lab: grain growth dynamics, apparent remobilization of reserves, photosynthetic performance (Fv/Fm, ΦPSII), leaf senescence, oxidative stress (SOD, CAT, APX, MDA) and final chemical composition (protein by Kjeldahl, oil by Soxhlet, sugar profile by HPLC).

The project includes the doctoral thesis of biotechnologist Mercedes González, supervised by Dr. Constanza Soledad Carrera (co-supervised by Eliana López Colomba). Results will serve breeding programs, crop modelers, growers and the export-oriented agrifood industry in developing management strategies that are resilient to climate change. Aligned with SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 13 (Climate Action).