Wild relatives of pigeonpea in ChinaK BSaxenaauthorL JReddyauthorShiyingYangauthorXuxiaoZongauthorZhenghongLiauthorChaohongZhouauthorWild relatives play an important role in the genetic improvement
of cultivated crops. Breeders turn their attention to
the wild relatives of crops after unsuccessful search for
some unique trait in the cultivated germplasm. According
to van der Maesen (1986) the genus Cajanus has 32 species.
Of these, the Indian subcontinent harbors 18 species.
ICRISAT has the global responsibility of collection,
maintenance, and evaluation of germplasm of the wild
relatives of pigeonpea. At present a total of 213 accessions,
representing 20 Cajanus species are conserved for use in
the breeding programs.Pigeonpea2001International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)Article