ADAPTAGRI · HELP DESK
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QGood practicesDo legumes really reduce fertiliser costs?
Yes. Legumes (pea, chickpea, bean, lentil, vetch, lucerne) fix nitrogen from the air through bacteria on their roots and leave the soil richer for the next crop. Diverse rotations with legumes improve nitrogen use efficiency by 10–20%.
Examples from the good practices:
- "Adil Ispa" Ltd (Yarebitsa, Silistra region) rotates wheat, sunflower and maize with chickpea and pea. The triggers were depleted soil, more expensive mineral fertilisers and unstable yields. The result is natural nitrogen enrichment, less mineral fertiliser for the following crops and a broken cycle of diseases, pests and weeds.
- "Organic Grain" Ltd (Varna) works entirely without synthetic fertilisers — with an extended rotation including legumes and cover crops.
| Crop | Suitable preceding crops | Unsuitable |
|---|---|---|
| Common wheat | Early legumes (pea, bean, lentil, chickpea); early maize hybrids, sunflower, oilseed rape | Late maize hybrids, heavily weed-infested fields |
Example rotation: winter wheat – sunflower – pea, with cover crops after harvest. In organic production: lucerne (2 years) – wheat – sunflower or chickpea – vetch with oats for green manure.
Include the legume in your fertilisation plan: after it, reduce nitrogen for the next crop according to the soil analysis.
The farms' contacts are in the table at the start of this section. The Help Desk can help you get in touch.
Material: Training Module 1, sections 3 and 7 "Crop rotation and diversification"; good practices 2 and 3; appendices to Brochure 1.