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The practice of applying N fertiliser to legumes at seeding was critically studied in Lupinus angustifolius, L. albus, Ornithopus sativus, Pisum sativum arvense, Vicia dasycarpa and Vigna unguiculata in a series of field and pot trials. In addition, the theory that N fertiliser at flowering in pulses promotes seed yield, was tested. Apart from a pot trial with L. angustifolius, N fertiliser in no instance increased total mass at maturity and seed yields significantly, and N application at flowering had no effect. On the othe hand, O. sativus and V. dasycarpa showed strong initial response to N fertiliser applied at seeding on a infertile sand soil, but this effect had largely disappeared when the crops approached maturity.