TITLE:
Effect of Plant Spacing on Growth and Grain Yield of Soybean
AUTHORS:
Bhagirath S. Chauhan, Jhoana L. Opeña
KEYWORDS:
Row Spacing; Plant to Plant Spacing; Leaf Area; Weed Biomass
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Plant Sciences,
Vol.4 No.10,
October
9,
2013
ABSTRACT:
In the
Philippines, rice monoculture systems are common. Compared to these systems, the
rice-soybean cropping system may prove more water-efficient and there is a trend of increasing soybean
area in the response to water scarcity and need for crop diversification in the
Philippines. A field study was conducted to evaluate the effect of row and
plant to plant spacing (20 × 10, 20 × 5, 40 × 10, and 40 × 5 cm) on growth and
yield of soybean. Plant height was not influenced by the plant
geometry. Spacing, however, influenced leaf area and shoot biomass of soybean.
Plants grown at the widest spacing (i.e.,
40 × 10 cm) produced lowest leaf area and shoot biomass at 6 and 12 weeks after
planting. Leaf area and shoot biomass at other three spacing were similar.
There was a negative and linear relationship between weed biomass and crop
shoot biomass at 6 and 12 weeks after planting. Grain yield of soybean was not
affected by plant geometry and it ranged from 1.3 to 1.9 t·ha-1 at different spacing.