Horse Gram (Macrotyloma uniflorum)

Importance

• Known as Kulthi in India.
• Drought-hardy, grown in poor soils under dryland conditions.
• Used as dal, fodder, green manure, cover crop.
• Medicinal uses: Treats kidney stones, asthma, piles, and diabetes.
• Grown as a subsistence pulse in South India.

Origin; Tropical Africa (later spread to India).

Nutritional Value

• Protein: 18–20%
• Carbohydrates: 55–60%
• Fat: 0.5–1.0%
• Rich in iron, molybdenum, polyphenols, and antioxidants.

Area & Production in India

• Major states: Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Bihar.
• India contributes > 80% of world horse gram area.

Botanical Description

• Family: Leguminosae (Papilionaceae)
• Chromosome no.: 2n = 20
• Pollination: Self-pollinated
• Growth habit: Twining annual with slender branches.
• Pods: Small, flat, with 5–7 seeds.

Agronomy

• Season: Kharif (rainfed) and Rabi (post-rainy).
• Seed rate: 40–50 kg/ha.
• Spacing: 30 × 10 cm.
• Fertilizer: 15–20 kg N + 40–50 kg P₂O₅ /ha.
• Critical irrigation: Flowering & Pod filling (though mostly grown rainfed).
• Duration: 100–120 days.
• Yield: 6–8 q/ha (rainfed), 10–12 q/ha (irrigated).

Major Constraints

• Contains antinutritional factors: phytic acid, tannins.
• Low seed yield compared to major pulses.

Key ASRB-NET Points

• Most drought-hardy pulse.
• Chromosome no. 2n = 20.
• Protein content: 18–20%.
• Important rainfed pulse of South India.

Lathyrus / Khesari (Lathyrus sativus)

Importance

• Known as Khesari / Grass pea.
• Highly drought tolerant; often called the “insurance crop of rainfed areas”.
• Used as dal, fodder, and green manure.
• Low-input crop, thrives in poor soils.
• BUT – contains neurotoxin ODAP (β-N-oxalyl-L-α, β-diaminopropionic acid) → causes lathyrism (neurolathyrism) when consumed in excess.

Origin; Southern Europe / West Asia.

Nutritional Value

• Protein: 20–22%.
• Carbohydrate: 55–60%.
• High in iron and calcium.
• Limiting amino acid: Methionine.

Area & Production in India

• Mainly grown in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Maharashtra.
• India is the largest producer of Lathyrus.

 Botanical Description

• Family: Leguminosae (Papilionaceae)
• Chromosome no.: 2n = 14
• Pollination: Self-pollinated
• Growth habit: Erect or spreading herb with angular stems.
• Pods: 3–5 seeds.

Agronomy

• Season: Rabi (October–November sowing after rice).
• Seed rate: 30–40 kg/ha.
• Spacing: 30 × 10 cm.
• Fertilizer: 15–20 kg N + 40–50 kg P₂O₅ /ha.
• Can be grown on residual soil moisture (rice fallows).
• Duration: 100–120 days.
• Yield: 6–10 q/ha (rainfed).

 Health Concern & Improvement

• ODAP neurotoxin causes lathyrism (crippling paralysis of lower limbs).
• Safe limit: < 30% in diet.
• Control:
  • Soaking + boiling → reduces ODAP.
  • Breeding of low-ODAP (<0.05%) varieties (e.g., Ratan, Pusa-24).
  • Government restrictions on sale in some states.

Key ASRB-NET Points

• Chromosome no. 2n = 14.
• Protein: 20–22%.
• Contains neurotoxin ODAP → causes lathyrism.
• Most common pulse of rice fallows in Eastern India.
• Known as “poor man’s pulse”.

Quick Differentiation (Horse gram vs. Lathyrus):