Cowpea speed breeding using regulated growth chamber conditions and seeds of oven-dried immature pods potentially accommodates eight generations per year.

Using the speed breeding protocol developed in this study, cowpea breeding cycles can be increased from the traditional one cycle per year in the field to as many as 8 generations per year in regulated growth chamber conditions. This protocol has no special technical requirements; hence, it can be implemented in any standard growth chamber. This would fast-track development, testing, validation, and utilization of improved cowpea cultivars.