Effect of Source–Sink Ratio Manipulation on Growth, Flowering, and Yield Potential of Soybean

Heba M. Ibrahim, Basharat Ali, Ali El-Keblawy, Taoufik Ksiksi, Mohamed A. El-Esawi, Izabela Jośko, Zaid Ulhassan and Mohamed S. Sheteiwy
Additional contact information
Heba M. Ibrahim: Department of Agricultural Botany, Faculty of Agriculture, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, Egypt
Basharat Ali: Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad 38040, Pakistan
Ali El-Keblawy: Department of Applied Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Sharjah, Sharjah P.O. Box 27272, United Arab Emirates
Taoufik Ksiksi: Biology Department, College of Science, UAE University, Al-Ain P.O. Box 15551, United Arab Emirates
Mohamed A. El-Esawi: Botany Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
Izabela Jośko: Institute of Plant Genetics, Breeding and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agrobioengineering, University of Life Sciences, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
Zaid Ulhassan: Institute of Crop Science, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Laboratory of Spectroscopy Sensing, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Mohamed S. Sheteiwy: Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Mansoura University, Mansoura 35516, Egypt

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 10, 1-14

Abstract: Trade-offs between growth and reproduction in soybean require resource availability manipulations. Decapitation and reducing sink strength through deflowering can affect the source–sink ratio that affects plant growth, development, and yield. The current study assesses the effect of decapitation (Decap) and removal of the two lowest racemes (R2LR) and their combination on growth, flowering, and yield capacity of soybean through controlling the source–sink ratio and inducing the “stay-green” phenotype. Two field experiments were conducted during 2018 and 2019 in the Agronomy Farm located at Mansoura University, Egypt. Decapitation was done at the V4 stage (35 days after sowing, DAS), during which four nodes on the main stem had fully developed leaves beginning with the unifoliolate nodes, whereas R2LR was performed at the R2 stage (50 DAS), during which the plants had one open flower at one of the two uppermost nodes on the main stem. Results indicated that Decap, R2LR, and their combination significantly increased seed yield per plant through increasing plant growth and flowering and improving biochemical attributes. The combination between Decap and R2LR was generally more effective in positively modulating plant vegetative, reproductive, and physiological capacity than either Decap or R2LR alone. Moreover, the number of branches as well as pods/plant and IAA content responded positively to Decap, whereas net assimilation rate, seed growth rate, number of flowers/node, and cytokinins content responded positively to R2LR. Decap and R2LR were interpreted in light of their effects on inducing the “stay-green” phenotype and altering the source–sink ratio. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that concealing the apical dominance in conjunction with reducing the sink strength through guided raceme removal would be beneficial for the reproductive potential in soybean.

Keywords: Glycine max; decapitation; raceme removal; hormonal regulation; source–sink ratio; yield (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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