Primarily an increased interest in feeding the beans as forage crops due to the content in the seeds of a significant amount of protein (25-35%), valuable amino acids and relatively low anti-nutritious substances (glycosides, tannins, protease inhibitors). Protein broad beans with a high solubility to 46%. A nutritional value and digestibility of legume seeds is very high. Starch broad beans contain 33-40%, and ash up to 50% is made up of phosphorus.
A good nutritious green mass of different beans. It contains a protein more than in the green mass of corn. In the green mass and seeds of unripe many different vitamins (A, B and C in particular), which makes them indispensable in the diet of animals, with the largest use of silage was made from a mixture of broad beans with cereal components.
This is one of the most productive crops of beans, the potential productivity of corn which is 35 - 60 kg / ha. Yield of green mass is about 400 and even 600 kg / ha (data SibNIIkormov SSI), which is greater than peas, vetch, soybean, lupine.
Due to its characteristics of broad beans in recent years is widely used in ecological agriculture, as one of the best crop components. In general, the merits of a given culture, can be safely attributed the ability to preserve fertility potential. Due to the unique ability of symbiosis with nitrogen-fixing bacteria, this culture, like many other legumes can provide a necessary amount of nitrogen and enrich their soil.
With an active symbiotic potential of forage legumes is much higher than that of other similar crops. In normal conditions, a symbiotic one plant broad beans formed 250 - 300 nodules. The intensity of nitrogen fixation proceeds from budding and ripening until the seed pods in the upper tiers. On average during the growing season by feeding symbiosis with beans absorbed from the air up to 300 kg / ha of nitrogen, half of which is followed by crops. In addition, a powerful mass of beans is able to suppress weeds press thus eliminating chemical pesticides.
In recent years, broad beans are widely used to protect soil from erosion, helped by a strong vegetative mass and the root system, due to which there are processes of biological structure of soil, which in turn helps to alleviate her preplant other crops. Besides bean culture is one of the few crops that can convert insoluble phosphates into available form for other plants. In general, in the soil after broad beans is more than 15 kg / ha of root residues.
The use of forage legumes as green manure is of great importance in areas of Russia, which is dominated by podzolic soils with low organic matter content. Organic fertilizers cumbersome and expensive compared to using green manure, which have a number of advantages. Application of manure, peat and other organic fertilizers leads to the cultivation of mainly arable layer, while the broad beans, used as green manure, due to extensive root systems contribute to cultivation of the soil layers below the topsoil horizon at a depth of 2 m. As a result of improved soil aeration, which is conducive to the forming process as a whole. Under the influence of green manure reduced soil acidity, improves the carbon nutrition of plants, soil microflora is activated, it increases the biological and absorption capacity of the soil.
Are well-known medicinal properties and broad beans, seeds and green mass that have diuretic and anti-inflammatory action. In the old beans were widely used herbal teas for colds, diarrhea, etc.
