Tikrit Journal for Agricultural Sciences

Effect of Plant Spacing on Growth, Yield, and Nitrogen Fixation by Faba Bean (Vicia Faba L.) Cultivation in a Greenhouse

https://doi.org/10.25130/tjas.26.2.18
Volume 26, Issue 2
Spring 2026
Pages 242-256
Tikrit Journal for Agricultural Sciences

Document Type : Articles

Authors

Tariq Faruq Sadiq 1
Hirokatsu Utagawa 2
Masami Takahata 3
Abdulla Aram Abdulla 3
Farhad Jamal Hasan 4
Berivan Muhsin Azeez 4

1 Department of Soil and Water, College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences, Salahaddin University-Erbil, Iraq.

2 Team leader of JICA Project (Sabat) in Erbil-Iraq

3 International Consulting Department, Kokusai Kogyo Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan

4 General Director of Agriculture Research and Extension, Director of Agriculture Training Center in Region-Erbil, Iraq

Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the effect of different plant spacings (10, 20, 40, 60, and 80 cm) on the growth, yield components, and seed quality of the faba bean (Vicia faba L.) cultivar ‘Aquadulce’ under greenhouse conditions. The experiment was conducted using a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replicates. The results showed that plant spacing influenced the chlorophyll content, plant height, number of branches, number of leaves, number of pods per plot, seed yield, and quality traits significantly under (P ≤ 0.05). The highest leaf chlorophyll (SPAD) content (38.13), plant height (41.75 cm), number of branches (4.78), pod number (545.5 pods plot-1), and total yield per plot (9.62 kg plot-1) were observed at 60 cm spacing. Spacing was 20cm which led to an increase in seed per individual pod (4.38 seeds per pod 1), but at the same time the productivity was decreased due to overcrowding. A very large spacing (80 cm) provided less competition and less yield per area. Also, plant spacing has a large impact on the crude protein content of seed and soil nitrogen dynamics. Furthermore, moderate spacing (20-60cm) resulted in improved seed protein up to 29.12%, and spacing 10-40cm resulted in higher levels of soil nitrogen after harvesting (107.33 mg kg-1). Thus, a 60 cm spacing was determined to be the best to achieve maximum yield and high seed quality in the greenhouse.

Keywords

Faba bean
Plant spacing
Greenhouse
SPAD value
Crude protein
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