Origin

Blanoro originated from the triple crossbreed of L-4924 x Blanco Lechoso x Blanco Sinaloa-92 done in 1997 in the Campo Experimental Costa de Hermosillo (CECH) of the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias (INIFAP). The L-4924 variety is a swineherd type chickpea with small brown grains that are resistant to drying and wilting. Blanco Lechoso is a variety of Spanish origin, the grain is large, white and spongy; it is valued by experts due to its high quality. Blanco Sinaloa-92 is a variety developed by the INIFAP (^{Gómez et al., 2003}), of high yield, high adaptability to the environment of the northwestern part of the country and with a grain color and size that is suitable for the international market.

The development process of the Blanoro variety was done in the CECH. From the first segregation generation (F1) the harvest was done in mass (M) without selection. In later generations a mass selection was done, selecting big and clear grains until the fourth generation; the fifth generation selected individual plants. The original Blanoro variety corresponded to plant number 12 in Hermosillo (12H). From then on, harvest was done in mass until the seventh segregation generation (F7), selecting by grain size and uniformity the phenotype characteristics of the plant, color and size of grain. Its entire genealogy is: IIGH.97.6-M-M-M-M-12H-M-M. During the selection process, the variety was evaluated against “rabies” caused by the Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. ciceris fungus, and was selected as resistant to this disease.

Starting on the fall-winter O-I 2004-2005 cycle until O-I 2008-2011, it was evaluated as the variety with the Hoga 012 identification in the regional yield test and in validation parcels established in northwest Mexico, in the locations of: Costa de Hermosillo, Valle del Yaqui and Valle del Mayo in Sonora; Valle del Fuerte and Valle de Culiacán in Sinaloa; and Valle de Santo Domingo in Baja California Sur. Blanoro has proven its adaptability to the entire northwestern region and could adapt to other agricultural zones of Mexico.

Description of Blanoro

Blanoro is a semi-erect growth habit plant. It has green leaves of medium intensity, similar to those of Blanco Sinaloa-92 and Costa 2004 (^{Morales et al., 2005}). The leaf is a compound type, with medium leaflets, oval-shaped and of a semi-opaque green color. The flower is white, the sheaths are big and on average are 30.55 mm in longitude by 15.6 mm in diameter when they are in the process of developing grains. They are bright green similar to the ones of Costa 2004.

The average weight of the Blanoro seed is 66-72 g per 100 seeds; this is equal to a caliber of 42.44 seeds in 30 g of weight (or 3 x or 4 x caliber). Their grain is a creamy white color, with a pronounced roughness similar to that of Blanco Sinaloa-92. The shape of the seed is angular round, similar to the seed of Blanco Sinaloa-92, although bigger in size. The Blanoro variety is resistant to Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris which is one of the main agents that causes wilting and drying of the chickpea. Their cooking time is similar to Blanco Sinaloa, approximately 10% more time than Blanco Sinaloa-92 after soaking the seed for 12 hours.

Blanoro has an intermediate maturity cycle, similar to Blanco Sinaloa-92. It sprouts the first flowers between 37 and 50 days after sowing and it finishes flowering 90 days after. The maturity to be cut changes between 110 and 125 days after sowing, and the maturity for harvest varies between 125 and 135 days. The growth habit of the plant is determined. It produces branches that are 64 cm in length with an average of 3 primary branches and 4 to 6 secondary branches.

Yield and grain quality

The Blanoro variety was evaluated in the regional yield tests established in the locations of Valle del Fuerte and Valle de Culiacán in Sinaloa; Valle del Yaqui, Valle del Mayo and Costa de Hermosillo in Sonora; and Valle de Santo Domingo in Baja California Sur. Subsequently, starting on the fall winter 2007-2008 cycle and until the 2012-2013 cycle, Blanoro was evaluated, among other lines and varieties, in validation parcels in 44 locations in northwest Mexico in the states of Sonora, Sinaloa and Baja California Sur in cooperative agricultural fields. The management of the evaluation parcels was done according to the production systems of each area where the evaluation was carried out. Standard deviation values were used in order to estimate the consistency of the genotypes (Binsanger and Barah, 1980), the stability model of ^{Eberhart and Russel (1966)} and the classification of varieties proposed by ^{Carballo and Márquez (1970)}.

There was no significant statistical difference in the yield of the origin and exportation grain between the two varieties. A genotype stability analysis was carried out through the division of the genetic-environmental interaction in two parts, one which is due to the response of the variety when changing the environmental indexes, and the second to the inexplicable deviations of the regression on the environmental index. A stable variety is one that shows a bi= 1 regression coefficient and a regression deviation of S ² d= 0. In accordance to the aforementioned criteria and to the classification proposal of ^{Carballo and Márquez (1970)}, both varieties presented a better response in good environments but it was inconsistent (where bi= 0.0011 and 0.0010 for Blanoro and Blanco Sinaloa-92, respectively; and S ² d= 0.0301 and 0.0308 for Blanoro and Blanco Sinaloa-92, respectively). According to the evaluations, Blanoro presented an average of 192 kg ha^-1 more exportation yield in an average of six years of evaluation than the Blanco Sinaloa-92 control (Table 1).

The exportation yield was obtained by passing a sample of the grain through a 9 mm mesh in diameter; the grain that did not go through the mesh would be the one selected for exportation. In the same manner, the caliber of the Blanoro grain was two points larger than the control one (45 vs. 47 caliber), and the percentage of exportation grain was bigger in Blanoro than it was in the control one with values of 94% vs. 88% (Table 2).

The tendency of Blanoro to present a higher yield, a slightly bigger grain and a higher exportation percentage than Blanco Sinaloa-92 can be observed. According to the results, Blanoro favorably competes with Blanco Sinaloa-92 in terms of yield, grain characteristics, exportation percentage, grain caliber and resistance to drying and wilting due to Fusarium.

Comparative advantages of the variety

The Blanoro variety shows a higher yield, similar caliber and brighter grain than the commercial variety Blanco Sinaloa-92. Blanco Sinaloa-92 presented an average yield of 2 442 kg ha^-1 and the new variety presented an average yield of 2 634 kg ha^-1 (information from 2007-2013); the average grain caliber of the control variety was 47 (x), while the new Blanoro variety presented a caliber of 45 (2 x), in an average of six years of evaluation in validation parcels done in northwest Mexico. The grain caliber was defined as the number of seeds necessary to complete 30 g of weight. Furthermore, the grain of this variety is a similar color to the control Blanco Sinaloa-92, as it presented a 33.5% relative reflectance measured with Agtron equipment (green specter) and 30.6% reflectance with the Blanoro variety (^{Romero-Baranzini et al., 2010}). With the above considerations, the new variety will efficiently compete with other countries that produce chickpea, while facilitating the placement of Mexican chickpea and obtaining a better selling price in the international market.

Agronomic management

The agronomic management of Blanoro is similar to Blanco Sinaloa-92. Blanoro can be produced with conventional irrigation, drip systems or residual humidity. Due to its semi-erect growth habit, harvest can be done in a direct mechanical manner with a minimum loss, providing appropriate adjustments to the threshing machine. It has been observed that Blanoro tends to have a higher susceptibility to the attack of leaf miner (Lyriomiza cicerina), probably due to the big size of the leaflet compared to that of other improved and creole varieties. A relation already mentioned by ^{Toker et al. (2010)} in Turkey indicates that the genotypes of common leaves are the most susceptible, followed by those of composed leaves with big leaflets. It is therefore necessary to keep in mind the frequent monitoring of the plague in the field in order to control it chemically or biologically.

Adaptation area

The adaptation area of the Blanoro variety is in the regions of Costa de Hermosillo, Valle del Yaqui and Valle del Mayo in Sonora; Valle del Fuerte and Valle de Culiacán in Sinaloa; and Valle de Santo Domingo in Baja California Sur. In these regions, Blanoro reaches its highest yield and biggest grain size; this comprises a potential surface of 100 000 ha.