Exploiting diversity in organic lentil (Lens culinaris) cultivation: germplasm collection and cultivar mixtures

The present PhD project aims to investigate the potential benefits of crop diversification for lentil cultivation in Italy and to explore the genetic potential of Italian lentil landraces, while considering the priorities set forth by farmers and other practitioners. We hypothesize that the introduction of cultivar mixtures in lentil cultivation could enhance the stability and reliability of production through various mechanisms, including phenotypic plasticity, compensation, complementarity, and other possible unexplored mechanisms. Additionally, we assume that Italian lentil accessions preserved by farmers and gene banks could provide a valuable source of genetic diversity for designing functional cultivar mixtures or for prospective breeding activities.