Cicereae
| Cicer | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Faboideae |
| Tribe: | Cicereae |
| Genus: |
Cicer L. |
| Species | |
|
Cicer acanthophyllum Ref: ILDIS Version 6.05 |
|
 |
|
Cicer acanthophyllum
Cicer anatolicum
Cicer arietinum-chickpea
Cicer atlanticum
Cicer bijugum
Cicer canariense
Cicer chorassanicum
Cicer cuneatum
Cicer echinospermum
Cicer fedtschenkoi
Cicer flexuosum
Cicer graecum
Cicer incisum
Cicer judaicum
Cicer kermanense
Cicer macracanthum
Cicer microphyllum
Cicer mogolatvicum
Cicer montbretii
Cicer multijugum
Cicer oxyodon
Cicer pinnatifidum
Cicer pungens
Cicer rechingeri
Cicer reticulatum
Cicer songaricum
Cicer spiroceras
Cicer stapfianum
Cicer subaphyllum
Cicer tragacanthoides
Cicer yamashitae
Ref: ILDIS Version 6.05
Cicer is a genus of the legume family Fabaceae and the only genus found in tribe Cicereae. Its native distribution is across the Middle East and Asia. Its best-known and only domesticated member is Cicer arietinum; this species includes the chickpea, also known as garbanzo bean, which is commonly used for making dal.
Possibilities of More Domesticated Species of the Cicer genus in the Future
Currently, the only domesticated species of the Cicer genus is Cicer arietinum, commonly known as the chickpea. The chickpea is a staple food source that is used in a large number of Middle eastern households and is becoming increasingly more common among households around the world. In the coming years, it will become more difficult to feed the growing population of the world, and in anticipation of this crisis, many researchers are trying to find new sources of food from undomesticated species of plants. The hope is that through research, domestication, and crop improvement, plants that were previously inedible can become a major source of food.
The wild progenitor of the chickpea (Cicer arietinum) is Cicer reticulatum. Since the chickpea has descended from this wild plant, there is a possibility that this wild progenitor can offer other forms of edible chickpeas after domestication. In wild chickpea (Cicer reticulatum), a considerable proportion of the mature pods remain intact, and this characteristic leads to the species being described as preadapted to domestication. This essentially means that the function of one of its traits can change, or evolve, as the progenitor is domesticated. This implies that traits such as texture, size, and most importantly, nutritional content can be adjusted in this species. Domesticated chickpea is considered vernalization insensitive (it can flower at all times of the year), whereas wild Cicer reticulatum shows a considerable flowering advance (of up to 30 days) in response to vernalization—which means that the plant would have to grow in areas where it is exposed to a prolonged period of cold before it can properly grow.
...
Wikipedia