RESEARCH PROJECT: CULTIVATION of  MUNG BEANS in GERMANY

(09/22)

The Institute of Botany welcomed Professor Dr. Kishore CS Panigrahi, NISER Bhubaneswar, India, as visiting professor and Mercator fellow from 1.4.2022 - 30.9.2022. Professor Panigrahi studies how light signaling is perceived by model plants and impacts crop production. His research stay has been financed through the DFG-funded International Graduate School for Plant Science (IRTG 2466 "Network, exchange, and training program to understand plant resource allocation").

Mung bean (Vigna radiata) is a widely consumed pulse crop in India, appreciated for the taste, texture, protein, starch and micronutrient content. In Germany, the consumption of mung bean is increasingly popular. Bus still, the health benefits provided by pulses and their contribution to a sustainable economy are fairly unknown to large parts of the population in Germany.

A joint research program has been initiated to study mung bean cultivation and allocation of nutrients in seeds.

Professor Panigrahi was supported in this project by Maren Huppertz, Bachelor student of Biology.

As part of this project, the growth of the mung bean was investigated in relation to soil conditions in a field at the HHU Botanical Garden. The interested public was invited to visit the mung bean plantation in the Botanical Garden and to discuss the potential of this plant. In the meantime, the outdoor project has come to an end due to seasonal reasons.

At the "Long Night of Science" event on Friday, 9 September, in Düsseldorf city centre, Professor Panigrahi, institute staff members and students illustrated the nutritional benefits of this plant as well as the challenges of adapting the cultivation of an Indian legume in Germany.