No 2, July 1994. Hard copies of the Australian New Crops Newsletter are available from the publisher, Dr Rob Fletcher. Details of availability are included in the Advice on Publications Available . Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Research Paper Series No.
Chickpea is one of the new crop success stories of the past decade in Australia.
Commencing with a few small sowings on the Darling Downs in south-east Queensland in 1978, chickpea production has increased rapidly. These first trials were conducted with six Indian chickpea introductions and the following year more than sixty accessions were introduced and screened. Eric Corbin coordinated the Australian assessment of chickpeas by distributing 15 lines in 1973 and 16 lines in 1974 to workers at a number of sites stretching from Launceston in Tasmania to Kununurra in northern Western Australia. Over the two years, there were six trials in Queensland, five in New South Wales, two each in Western Australia, Victoria and Tasmania, and one in South Australia. The most promising yields were recorded in the Queensland and Kununurra trials.