legumes

New research suggests climate change could significantly alter the future of Chinese milk vetch, a legume widely grown as green manure in southern China's rice paddies. Shifting temperatures and rainfall patterns may affect where and how well the plant grows, with implications for soil fertility and sustainable rice farming in the region.

Legumes improve soil fertility, nutrition, cropping diversity and resilience, but experts say their potential in Africa is being held back. Poor seed systems, biotic and abiotic constraints, weak policy support, post-harvest losses and uneven research investment are cited as the main barriers limiting wider legume production across the continent.