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Interaction Amongst Soybean [ Glycine max (L.) Merrill] Genotype, Soil Type and Inoculant Strain with Regard to N 2 Fixation
Author(s) -
Van Jaarsveld C. M.,
Smit M. A.,
Krüger G. H. J.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
journal of agronomy and crop science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.095
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1439-037X
pISSN - 0931-2250
DOI - 10.1046/j.1439-037x.2002.00561.x
Subject(s) - microbial inoculant , nitrogen fixation , bradyrhizobium japonicum , agronomy , genotype , bradyrhizobium , strain (injury) , horticulture , glycine , chemistry , zoology , biology , nitrogen , rhizobiaceae , symbiosis , bacteria , inoculation , gene , biochemistry , genetics , organic chemistry , anatomy , amino acid
The nitrogen (N 2 )‐fixing bacterial inoculant strain for soybean [ Glycine max (L.) Merrill] is not indigenous to South African soils. The interaction between soybean genotype, soil type and inoculant strain, however, has a definite influence on soybean production and compatibility should be optimized. This paper reports a growth chamber study using three different soybean genotypes (Barc‐9, Avuturda and Talana), three Bradyrhizobium japonicum inoculant strains (WB108, WB112 and WB1) and three soil types (Avalon, Arcadia and sand) to evaluate the effectiveness of N 2 fixation by different genotype × soil type × inoculant strain combinations, using different measuring parameters. These parameters included nodule fresh mass (NFM), amount of N 2 fixed (P fix ), as determined by the ureide method, seed protein content (SPC), average seed mass per plant (SMP) and average foliar N content (FNC). The comparison amongst the three‐way interactions, genotype × soil type × inoculant strain, did not differ significantly for the parameters used. Significant two‐way interactions were soil × inoculant for FNC, P fix and SMP; soil × genotype for FNC and SMP, and inoculant × genotype for FNC (P < 0.05). The soil × inoculant strain interaction was significant for P fix (P < 0.05). NFM, P fix , FNC, SMP and SPC correlated positively with soil pH and negatively with soil clay content and soil NO 3 – and NH 4 + content (P < 0.05). SPC was significantly different (P < 0.05) for soil type, genotype and inoculant strain. P fix and NFM did not reflect the protein content of the seeds, indicating that nodule evaluation should be used with caution as a N 2 fixation parameter. Low soil pH and high mineral N content inhibited N 2 fixation. NFM correlated negatively with the clay content of the soil. This finding confirms that soybean production in South Africa can be improved by appropriate selection of genotypes and inoculant strains for their compatibility in different soils.