Characterization of grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) entries by means of agronomically useful traits

Introduction Grass pea or chickling pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) is a diploid (2n=14), self-pollinated annual with branched, straggling, or climbing habit, blue (sometimes violet or white) flowers and characteristic smooth seed with pressed sides . The center of origin and diversification of the Lathyrus gene pool is in the Mediterranean region . The earliest archaeological remains of Lathyrus appear in the Neolithic in the Balkans and Near East of Bulgaria, Cyprus, Iraq, Iran and Turkey . According to Kupicha , the genus Lathyrus contains about 150 species but only L. sativus is widely cultivated for human consumption, particularly in Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, India, Nepal and Pakistan . In Italy, this crop has mostly disappeared and today it is no longer seen as the ‘food of the poor’ as it was in the past. Fortunately, grass pea is still used by local populations in marginal areas, and sold in some marketplaces.