Cultivation and testing of five old fava bean varieties

'Vicia faba (L.) - old varieties for testing at four locations across Austria.A project for new friends of field bean cultivation in extensive small-scale gardening.' This marked the start of an unusually committed student project group consisting of Alexandra Ziegler, Elke Schmölz, Silke Rußegger and Anton Baldauf, who set out to write their bachelor's thesis required for their degree in agricultural sciences - but primarily with the aim of reviving a crop that had largely been forgotten in Austria. In the Year of Legumes, it seems appropriate to refer to this work: Are there differences between the individual varieties and locations in terms of growth and yield, emergence, flowering, pod set, pest occurrence and diseases? The authors summarise: 'The different preconditions (soils, previous crops) are one reason why the results appear only partially comparable. However, these results provide a basis for further intensive research into the rediscovery of a fascinating crop.'