Butterfly pea - a legume success story in cropping lands of central Queensland

Abstract

The central Queensland region is a major producer of wheat, sorghum and beef. Changes in relative values of cereals and beef, together with a market demand to finish steers at a younger age, has induced farmers to invest more resources into their beef enterprises. Soil fertility decline is seen as a major constraint to cereal production and one that can be overcome by use of pasture phases in crop rotations. Within this environment, butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) has emerged as a well-adapted summer-growing legume for the heavy textured cropping soils of the region. It is being sown into existing or new permanent pastures and in pasture phases within cropping rotations to improve animal production and soil nitrogen status. Butterfly pea is relatively inexpensive to establish and can provide liveweight gain of between 0.75 and 1.3 kg/head/day. The combination of farmer, extension and research inputs has resulted in widespread adoption with > 12,000 ha being successfully established over the past 3 years.