Division of Plant Breeding Methodology

Working Group "Breeding Research Faba Bean"

Vicia faba L. is a partially allogamous plant, with an intermediate level of cross- and of self-fertilization, realized by honey and bumble bees. With this reproductive behaviour, breeding methods appropriate for faba bean should be general solutions of which the methods for self-fertilizing and cross-fertilizing crops should be just extreme, marginal cases. This reasoning serves as entrance into our faba bean breeding research, an area that offers numerous challenges and promises due to the bean being a legume (pulse) crop, due to its seed being food and feed in temperate and semi-arid zones, due to it being a field and a garden crop and because winter and spring types exist.



I am not accepting further PhD students, because in less than one PhD project's duration phase I shall be sent into my retirement ;-)

Current project:


Recently finished projects:


  • DFG Projekt: "Molecular and quantitative-genetic analysis of seed size in faba bean (Vicia faba L.)"
    PD Dr. Wolfgang Ecke
    PD Dr. Wolfgang Ecke
    Final Report to DFG on Vicia faba seed size genetics
  • The ProFaba projekt: "SusCrop Call 1: ProFaba - Developing improved Vicia faba breeding practices and varieties to drive domestic protein production in the European Union. Work Package at Universität Göttingen: Breeding research on frost tolerance"
    Contact Alex Windhorst
    Alex Windhorst
    Pro-Faba
    more-ProFaba
  • Abo-Vici: "Breeding and agronomy of novel, low-vicine faba beans and adoption as domestic protein feed"
    Rebecca Tacke
    Contact Abo-Vici project
    Abo-Vici
  • Faba bean: Genetic analysis of the Ascochyta-resistance of faba bean (Vicia faba L.) In cooperation with Dr. B. Koopmann
    Rabia Faridi
  • Faba bean: genetic increase and stabilization of grain yield via optimum exploitation of heterosis; Analysis of pollination and pollinators
    Contact Lisa Brünjes
    Lisa Brünjes
    Press Release 2018 LABORJOURNAL 2018
  • Breeding research on the mixed cropping of faba bean and wheat
    IMPAC³
  • Regional chicken races, regional protein feed ("PorReE")
    Contact Wolfgang Link and Sonja Yaman
    Ackerbohne und regionale Hühnerrasse von Dr. R. Sharifi


    Technical Assistant:
    Sonja Yaman
    Svenja Wiedenroth



    An important tool: the isolation cage!

    Isohaus ALT


    These PhD theses on faba bean were carried out since 1995:

      • Awadallah Abdalla Abdelmula, 1999: Genetic improvement of drought tolerance in faba beans Vicia faba L. Cuvilier, Göttingen.

      • Hilke M. Riemer, 1999: Nmin nach Ernte: Genotypische Variation in aktiuellem Material von Ackerbohnen (Vicia faba L.) und Körnererbsen Pisum sativum L.). Cuvillier Göttingen.

      • Jens Christian Vaupel, 1999: Neue CMS-Systeme für die Produktion von Minor x Major-Hybridsorten bei Vicia faba L.: Genetische und züchterische Analyse. Cuvillier Göttingen.

      • Memen Surahman, 2001: Detailed genetic analysis of a wide faba bean (Vicia faba L. cross 'German x Moroccan'. Cuvillier Göttingen.

      • Anja Kramer, 2002: Untersuchungen zum biotechnologisch unterstützten Gentransfer bei der Ackerbohne Vicia faba L. Cuvillier Göttingen (betreut von C. Möllers)

      • Andi Wijaya, 2003: Towards interspecific hybridization in Vicia faba L. Cuvillier Göttingen (betreut von C. Möllers)

      • Mahmoud Mohamed Zeid, 2003: Analysis of genetic diversity based on molecular markers (AFLP) and of heterosis in faba bean (Vicia faba) L. Cuvillier Verlag Göttingen.

      • Seif Eldin Gasim, 2003: Winter-hardy faba bean: Applied genetic research on the reproductive mode of the European gene pool. Cuvillier Verlag Göttingen.

      • Mustapha Arbaoui, 2007: Detailed genetic analysis of faba bean
        (Vicia faba) winter-hardiness and related traits. Universität Göttingen.

      • Lamiae Ghaouti, 2007: Comparison of pure line cultivars with synthetic cultivars in local breeding of faba bean (Vicia faba) for organic farming. Universität Göttingen.

      • Susanne Dieckmann geb. Voges, 2007: Genetische Analyse von Heterosis im jüngsten Stadium einer Pflanze, als Embryo, am Beispiel der Fababohne (Vicia faba). Universität Göttingen.

      • Franziska Roth, 2010: Evaluierung von Winterackerbohnen als Zwischenfrucht für eine ökologische Biogasproduktion. Cuvillier Göttingen (in Zusammenarbeit mit Rolf Rauber).

      • Ahmed Sallam, 2014: Detailed genetic approach to improve frost tolerance of German winter faba beans. Universität Göttingen.

      • Gregor Welna, 2014: Genetische Analysen für eine markergestützte Verbesserung der Trockenstresstoleranz von Winterackerbohnen. Universität Göttingen.

      • Winda Puspitasari, 2017: Association analyses to genetically study reproduction and seed quality features of faba bean (Vicia faba L.) . Universität Göttingen.

      • Daniel Siebrecht-Schöll, 2019: Breeding analysis of eight winter faba bean genotypes for mixed cropping with winter wheat. Universität Göttingen.

      • Rabia Faridi, 2022: Genetic analyses of the resistance of faba beans (Vicia faba) to the fungus Ascochyta fabae. Universität Göttingen. In cooperation with B. Koopmann.

      • Rebecca Tacke, 2023: Fine-mapping of the major locus for vicine and convicine in faba bean (Vicia faba L.) and application of the findings for winter faba bean breeding. Universität Göttingen.

      • Lisa Brünjes, 2023: Ackerbohne (Vicia faba L.): Genetische Erhöhung und Stabilisierung des Kornertrags durch optimale Heterosisnutzung; Analyse von Bestäubung und Bestäuberinsekten. Universität Göttingen.



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