Vernalization in Chickpea (Cicer arietinum); Fact or Artefact?

Various cool treatments of imbibing seeds reduced the subsequenttimes taken to flower in two genotypes of chickpea (Cicer arietinumL.). These reductions were greater in the kabuli cv. Rabat thanin the desi accession ICC 5810. Nevertheless, in both genotypes,the hastening of flowering was entirely accounted for by thephotothermal time accumulated during each cool temperature pretreatment,provided it was recognized that the ceiling photoperiods wereapproximately 10 and 8 h d^–1, respectively; i.e. neithergenotype shows a true vernalization response. A thorough reevaluationof ‘ responsiveness to vernalization’ in the chickpeagermplasm might now be prudent. Cicer arietinum L, chickpea, vernalization, photothermal time, screening germplasm