MORPHOLOGICAL AND BIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF WHITE LUPINE CULTIVARS (LUPINUS ALBUS L.)

White lupine is a species with a great perspective among annual grain legumes. A biological and breeding evaluation of a collection of 23 white lupine cultivars regarding basic traits and indicators was conducted, with an aim to select suitable parental forms. The study was carried out at the Institute of Forage Crops Pleven, Bulgaria during the period 2014-2016. The cultivars differed in their habitus, duration of the growing season, productivity, biochemical seed composition and susceptibility to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lupini. The vegetation period in the Central Northern Bulgaria conditions varied from 129 days in Barde to 148 days in Nahrquell and Shienfield Gard. Dega, Desnyanskii and Barde can be characterized as early-ripening cultivars, and late-ripening ones were Nahrquell, Shienfield Gard and Bezimenii 1. The highest protein content showed Horizont, Bezimenii 2 and Solnechnii (32.7-33.3%), and a reaction of resistance to Fusarium oxysporum 1. sp. lupini was demonstrated by nine cultivars (Nahrquell, BGR 6305, WAT, Kijewskij Mutant, Pflugs Ultra, Termis Mestnii, Solnechnii, Pink Mutant, Dega). Particular interest from a breeding viewpoint represents Tel Keram, Termis Mestnii, Solnechnii and Pink Mutant which are distinguished by high values of seed weight per plant and a favourable combination of the other traits, recommending them to be included in breeding programs for development of high-yielding white lupine cultivars.