Slow and regular wilting makes for higher soybeans

Unpredictable rain is simply one of many many challenges soybean producers face yearly. However, sure soybean varieties could also be higher at tolerating an prolonged interval of dry climate than others. Researchers with the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture lately printed a journal article highlighting which soybeans are higher to plant in water-limited areas.

Over the course of 4 rising seasons, researchers examined seventeen mid-south soybean varieties on the West Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center in Jackson. The soybean varieties had been examined underneath irrigated, rainfed and simulated drought situations.

“The information gained over time from this research project will help both soybean breeders and producers improve soybean variety selection to manage unpredictable drought conditions during the growing season.” stated Avat Shekoofa, crop physiologist on the UTIA Department of Plant Sciences.

The crew collected soybean water loss, wilting scores, leaf upkeep, and yield knowledge by means of six totally different managed and area experiments. One of their key findings confirmed a correlation to water wants in younger vegetation versus mature plants: If a soybean used plenty of water throughout vegetative progress, much less water can be accessible within the soil to help reproductive progress and pod filling when the drought stress happens.

The researchers additionally discovered a large variation in water loss amongst soybean varieties. Two of the soybean genotypes did higher underneath the tough situations than the remainder: “Ellis” and “USG Allen.” Under drought conditions, Ellis and USG Allen yielded 22% to 24% greater than fast-wilting varieties.

“Overall, the less the soybean wilts, the better candidate it is for use in water-limited areas,” stated Shekoofa, “Soybean varieties expressing slow wilting managed drought stress conditions later in the season well.”

The subsequent step on this analysis is increasing to incorporate a wider vary of soybean maturity teams, in addition to people who produce oils which can be greater in monosaturated fat, identified within the business as excessive oleic soybean varieties. Soybean genotypes that present slow-wilting traits are being integrated into breeding efforts to develop and enhance drought-tolerant soybean varieties.

“Genotype identification for a water saving trait: Exploring early stomal closure under soil drying among Mid-South soybeans,” printed October 16, 2021, in Agronomy Journal.

Researchers included the next UTIA plant scientists: Sam Purdom, graduate student; Avat Shekoofa, crop physiologist; Angela McClure, corn and soybean specialist; Vince Pantalone, plant breeder and geneticist; and Prakash Arelli, crop geneticist.

Provided by
University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture