Soybean Response to Inoculation with in the United States and Argentina

LEGGETT, MARY; DIAZ ZORITA, MARTIN; KOIVUNEN, MARJA; BOWMAN, ROGER; PESEK, ROBERT; STEVENSON, CRAIG; LEISTER, TODD

AGRONOMY JOURNAL

AMER SOC AGRONOMY

Año: 2017 vol. 109 p. 1031 - 1038

0002-1962

Although the relevance of biological N nutrition of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] is recognized worldwide, inoculation with Bradyrhizobium japonicum shows variable results and the benefit needs to be validated under current crop production practices. We conducted statistical analysis of soybean field trial data to provide insight into factors affecting the efficacy of soybean inoculation under contrasting crop production conditions. Most experimental sites, 187 trials in the United States and 152 trials in Argentina, were in soils with soybean history and naturalized B. japonicum strains. Yield increases were greater in Argentina (190 kg ha?1 equivalent to 6.39%) than in the United States (60 kg ha?1 equivalent to 1.67%). Tillage methods did not affect inoculant performance. In the United States, inoculation was more effective in soils with higher pH (>6.8) while in Argentina the greatest inoculation effect on crop production occurred in soils with a lower pH (