TITLE:
Bradyrhizobium japonicum Inoculation and Phosphorus Supplementation on Growth and Chlorophyll Accumulation in Soybean (Glycine max L.)
AUTHORS:
Eutropia V. Tairo, Patrick A. Ndakidemi
KEYWORDS:
Days to 50% Flowering; Days to 50% Pod Formation; Legumes; Plant Height; Leaf Area (LA); Leaf Area Index (LAI); Number of Leaves per Plant; Stem Girth
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Plant Sciences,
Vol.4 No.12,
December
3,
2013
ABSTRACT: A field and glasshouse experiment was conducted to study the effect of B. japonicum inoculation and phosphorus supplementation on growth and leaf chlorophyll content in soybean. The treatments consisted of B. japonicum inoculation (with & without), phosphorus supplementation at the levels of 0, 20, 40 and 80 kgP·ha-1. Both treatments were replicated four times in a split plot design. The following parameters were measured: plant height (cm), number leaves per plant, number of days to 50% flowering, number of days to 50% pod formation, stem girth and leaf area (LA). Results showed that inoculation with B. japonicum significantly increased plant height, number of leaves, leaf chlorophyll content, stem girth, leaf area (LA) and leaf area index (LAI). However, Phosphorus supplementation had significant effects in some parameters measured. The use of effective strain of B. japonicum and phosphorus supplementation was an efficient way of enhancing the growth of soybean.