WB-216: A common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) landrace with multiple characteristics from Western Himalayan Kashmir

Bean (Common and French bean) is one of the most important niche pulse crop in Western Himalayan region of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, grown as an important source of plant based proteins as well as a significant source of livelihood fetching premium prices. With the aim of identifying genotypes that combine disease resistance with tolerance to water stress as well as having easy cooking attributes, we undertook massive germplasm characterization between 2014–2018 to identify sources that combine acceptable yield levels with resistance to Bean Common Mosaic Virus (BCMV), tolerance to water stress as well as better cooking and nutritional quality. The genotype WB-216 was the result of such characterization and possesses several desirable attributes. WB-216 is a sturdy bush type plant with semi erect plant type having chordate leaves, white flowers with medium maturity having large kidney shaped pink seeds of medium brilliance, weighing about 37–40 grams. The plant has lush green foliage with large leaves. The genotype is fairly resistant to BCMV and resistant to shattering. It is a typical stay green genotype with a stay green score of 1. WB-216 is an easy to cook type bean having high water absorption capacity, hydration capacity and swelling capacity. WB-216 has a steeper growth angle and also showed higher radicle length and root biomass under PEG 6000 stress. In the greenhouse, WB-216 exhibited greater root depth under stress and better root biomass distribution. Under field conditions, it showed lower percent decrease under water stress than the released varieties.