eChapter Name: Sweet Pea
9789389130812
eBook Name: BREEDING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY OF FLOWERS: SET OF 2 VOLS. (SET PRICE)
by Anil K. Singh, Dr. A.K. Singh
Sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus) is the only species in the genus Lathyrus and family Fabaceae which is widely cultivated as an ornamental plant. Lathyrus comes from the Greek word “Lathyros” in which the prefix “la” means “very” and suffix “thyros” means “passionate”. The “Odoratus” is derived from Latin word which means “fragrant” (Fernald, 1950). It is mainly grown for its beautiful flower colour forms. It is an annual climbing plant growing to a height of 1-2 m with the support of a terminal tendril which twines around the plants and helps to climb. The illness caused by the ingestion of sweet pea is known as odoratism or sweet pea lathyrism. Sweet pea was used to verify Mendel’s work with the garden pea (Pisum sativum L.) in the early 1900s (Bateson, 1902). The genetical phenomenon of linkage was first demonstrated in the sweet pea. It is used prominently as a model organism to study flower development due to its large, colourful and fragrant flowers. The essential oils extracted from the sweet pea can be used in perfume blends.
ORIGIN AND DISTRIBUTION
Sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus L.) was discovered in Sicily in 1695 (Rice, 2002). Its species are found both in the Old World and the New World. The main centres of diversity are the Mediterranean region, Asia Minor and North America as well as temperate South America and East Africa (Kupicha, 1977, Jackson and Yunus, 1984, Yamamoto et al., 1984 and Simola, 1986). It generally grows in temperate regions and has been found on all continents except Antarctica (Kenicer et al., 2009 and Kenicer et al., 2005). Its cultivation is popular not only in the United Kingdom and the United States but also in Europe, Russia, Egypt, New Zealand, Australia and Japan (Hambidge,
1996, Inoue, 1981, 2007 and Rice, 2002). There are some reports of commercial sweet pea cut flower production (Hammett, 2006, Inoue, 1981 and Parsons, 2004). A seed bank at the Chichester Collection was started in 1998 and stores around 900 cultivars and around 100 accessions of other species.