Abstract
Toxic levels of extractable soil Al limit production of important crops in many areas of the world. The nature of the limitation in soybeans is not completely understood. Our objectives were to investigate the cause of acid-soil-induced delays in seedling emergence, the effect of acidity on productivity in non-nodulated soybeans and further test the Al tolerance of PI 416,937 compared to a sensitive control, Essex. Growth characteristics of the two genotypes through the flowering stage were measured on a Corozal clay (Aquic Tropudult) in Puerto Rico which had been differentially limed to provide a wide range of soil Al. Early growth was also studied in the laboratory using soil from the field experiment. Highly acidic soil conditions, coupled with high Al levels, reduced growth in both Essex and PI 416,937. The principal factor responsible for delayed emergence in the high Al soil was not delayed radicle initiation, but delayed initiation of hypocotyl elongation. Hypocotyl initiation was highly associated with rate of tap root growth, with the former possibly determined by the latter, because a minimum tap root length of 60 mm was required in both high and low Al soils before hypocotyl initiation commenced. In seedlings, the high acidity reduced root more than shoot growth. By 44 days after planting (DAP), however, soil acidity had reduced shoot growth greatly. Although the soybean plants were not nodulated, foliar N levels and shoot growth were decreased by high Al levels, indicating that interference with N fixation may not be the sole mechanism by which nitrogen accumulation and plant growth is reduced in the field.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Abruna F, Rodriguez J, Badillo-Feliciano J, Silva S and Vicente-Chandler J 1978 Crop response to soil acidity factors in Ultisols and Oxisols in Puerto Rico, III. Soybeans. J. Agric. Univ. P. R. 62, 90–112.
Armiger W H Foy C D, Fleming A L and Caldwell B E 1969 Differential tolerance of soybean varieties to an acid soil high in exchangeable aluminum. Agron. J. 60, 67–70.
Board J E and Caldwell A G 1991 Response of determinate soybean cultivars to low pH soils. Plant and Soil 132, 289–292.
Bray R H and Kurtz R T 1945 Determination of total organic and available forms of phosphorus in soils. Soil Sci. 59, 39–45.
Campbell K A G and CarterJr T E 1990 Aluminum tolerance in soybean. I. Genotypic correlation and repeatability of solution culture and greenhouse screening methods. Crop Sci. 30, 1049–1054.
Carmer S G, Walker S G and Seif R D 1969 Practical suggestions on pooling variances for F-test of treatment effects. Agron. J. 61, 334–336.
EdwardsJr C J and Hartwig E E 1971 Effect of seed size upon rate of germination in soybean. Agron J. 63, 429–430.
Fehr W R, Caviness C E, Burmood D T and Pennington J S 1971 Stages of development descriptions for soybean. Crop Sci. 11, 929–931.
Foy C D, CarterJr T E, Duke J A and Devine T E 1993 Correlation of shoot and root growth and its role in selecting for aluminum tolerance in soybean. J. Plant Nutr. 16, 305–325.
Goldman I L, CarterJr T E and Patterson R P 1989 Differential genotypic response to drought stress and subsoil aluminum in soybean. Crop Sci. 29, 330–334.
Hanson W D and Kamprath E J 1979 Selection for aluminum tolerance in soybeans based on seedling-root growth. Agron. J. 71, 581–586.
Hudak C M and Patterson R P 1990 Evaluation of a soybean plant introduction for drought tolerance under field conditions. Agron. Abst. p. 123.
Pan W L, Hopkins A G and Jackson W A 1988 Aluminum inhibited shoot development in soybean: A possible consequence of impaired cytokinin supply. Comm. Soil Sci. Plant Anal. 19, 1143–1153.
Plank C O 1988 Plant Analysis Handbook for Georgia. Cooperative Extension Service, University of Georgia College of Agriculture, Athens, Georgia. 64 p.
SAS Institute 1988 SAS/STAT User's Guide. SAS Institute, Inc, Cary, NC.
Shoemaker C A and Carlson W H 1990 pH affects seed germination of eight bedding plant species. HortScience 25, 762–764.
Sloane R J, Patterson R P and CarterJr T E 1990 Field drought tolerance of a soybean plant introduction. Crop Sci. 30, 118–123.
Stoffella P J, DiPaola M L, Pardossi A and Tognoni F 1991 Rhizosphere pH influences early root morphology and development of bell peppers. HortScience 26, 112–114.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Joint contribution from the USDA, ARS, Tropical Agriculture Research Station, Mayaguez, PR; USDA, ARS, Soybean and Nitrogen Fixation Research Unit, Raleigh, NC, and the Agricultural Experiment Station-University of Puerto Rico (AES-UPR), Rio Piedras, PR.
Joint contribution from the USDA, ARS, Tropical Agriculture Research Station, Mayaguez, PR; USDA, ARS, Soybean and Nitrogen Fixation Research Unit, Raleigh, NC, and the Agricultural Experiment Station-University of Puerto Rico (AES-UPR), Rio Piedras, PR.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ritchey, K.D., Carter, T.E. Emergence and growth of two non-nodulated soybean genotypes (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) in response to soil acidity. Plant Soil 151, 175–183 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00016282
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00016282