Main subject area: Plant science, food science
The aardaker (Lathyrus tuberosus) is a wild legume native to Europe which forms edible tubers similar to sweet potato. These tubers are particularly protein rich containing up to 25% protein. Furthermore, the aardaker can fix nitrogen and therefor grow in relatively poor soils and is very attractive to pollinators. Therefore, we believe it could be a valuable crop providing protein with a low CO2 footprint and a positive impact on the biodiversity in the agricultural landscape.
Since the aardaker is a wild plant not so much is known about it, and we are currently in the process of assessing its suitability as a crop and potential traits that need to be targeted in order to take it from a wild plant to a crop. This includes assessing the nutritional value of the tubers e.g. protein content and composition, starch content, potential toxic compounds and conducting field trials to assess yield and other agronomically relevant parameters. We do this in collaboration with a breeder in the Netherlands who has collected over 200 aardaker genotypes to use for breeding.
Any time
AU Flakkebjerg, 4200 Slagelse
30 ECTS: Theoretical thesis based on literature studies and/or analysis of issued and edited data sets.
45 ECTS: Experimental theses in which the student is responsible for collection and analysis of his/her own original data
60 ECTS: Experimental theses in which the student is responsible for planning, trial design and collection and analysis of his/her own original data
