Crop Res.

4 (1) : 11-18 (1991)

With one figure
Printed in India

Effect of phosphorus and plant density on the yield and yield

components o f soybean {Glycine max L. Merrill)

U . F . C H IE Z E Y , J. Y . Y A Y O C K AND M. K. AHM ED
Department o f Agronomy
Institute of Agricultural Research, Ahmadu Bello University,
Zaria, Nigeria

ABSTRACT

F i e l d e x p e r im e n ts w e r e c a r r ie d o u t d u r in g t h e r a in y se a so n o f 1984, 1985 an d
1 9 8 7 t o s t u d y t h e r e s p o n s e o f a n e w ly r e le a s e d s o y b e a n c v . S am soy 1 to d iffe r e n t
le v e ls o f p h o s p h o r u s ( 0 , 1 3 , 2 6 a n d 5 2 k g P /h a ) a n d p la n t d e n s it ie s ( 2 0 0 ,0 0 0 , 3 0 0 ,0 0 0 ,
4 0 0 ,0 0 0 . 5 0 0 ,0 0 0 a n d 6 0 0 ,0 0 0 p l a n t s / h a ) . S ig n if ic a n t y i e l d in c r e a s e s w e r e o b t a i n e d b y
a p p l y i n g p h o s p h o r u s f e r t iliz e r a n d t h e o p t im u m r a t e f o r h ig h g r a i n y i e l d w a s o b s e r v e d
t o b e 2 6 k g P /h a . A p a r t f r o m in c r e a s e d g r a in y i e l d , t h e a p p l i c a t i o n o f P a l s o in c r e a s e d
y ie ld c o m p o n e n ts su c h as n u m b er o f p o d s, n u m b er o f b ranches and 1 0 0 - s e e d w e ig h t .
T h e in c r e a s in g p la n t d e n s it y r e d u c e d t h e y ie ld co m p o n e n ts lik e n u m b er o f p od s,
n u m b e r o f b r a n c h e s a n d g r a in w e i g h t p e r p la n t . T h e p r o d u c t io n p e r u n it la n d a r e a
in c r e a s e d w i t h h ig h p o p u l a t i o n d e n s it y . T h e o p t im u m p l a n t d e n s it y f o r h ig h g r a in
y ie ld o f so y b e a n w a s fo u n d t o b e 5 0 0 ,0 0 0 p la n ts /h a .

K ey W ord s ; Glycine max L . M e r r ill, p h o s p h o r u s , p la n t d e n s i t y , s o y b e a n , y i e l d

INTRODUCTION
The total area under soybean cultivation in Nigeria is estimated at 210,000 ha
(FAO, 1986), centred in the southern Guinea savanna zone. Production has also
expanded to the northern Guinea savanna due to increased demand of the crop and
its products. The soils of the savanna zone are characteristically low in organic
matter (0.03-0.06%), total nitrogen (0.03-0.05%), available phosphorus (2.0-3.3
ppm) but with a high level of potassium (0.12-0.18 meq/lGOg).
Agronomic trails with soybeans have shown that phosphorus is the most
important nutrient element for soybean production (Nimje and Seth, 1987; Pal e t a l.,
1989). Fertilizer trials with soybean in the southern Guinea savanna of Nigeria
showed a positive response to P (Goldsworthy and Heathcote, 1964). The response
o f soybean to nitrogen has been contradictory. Kalia e t a l. (1984) observed no
advantage by applying nitrogen to soybean because of the ability of the crop to fix
nitrogen in the presence of R h izo b iu m spp. However, Soliman (1986) believed that
symbiotic fixation alone cannot meet all the N requirements of soybean and, there­
fore, there is a need for supplemental N. Response to K has been noted in soils
with low K status (Touchton and Rickert, 1986).
 12 Chiezey, Yayock and Ahmed

Studies of plant density also show that yield of soybean could be increased by
cropping at high densities (Heatherly, 1988).
Until the early 1980s, the most commonly grown soybean variety in Nigeria
was the ‘Malayan’, which has the undesirable tendency to shatter on maturity with
the loss of most of its seeds. High yielding and low shatterring varieties were
released in 1983 by the Institute for Agricultural Research, Samaru, Nigeria (Leleji
and Adedzwa, 1983). The present investigations were, therefore, conducted to
determine the response of newly released cv. Samsoy 1 of soybean to phosphorus
levels and plant densities.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Field experiments were conducted in Samaru, Northern Guinea savanna,
Nigeria during the rainy seasons of 1984, 1985 and 1987 using a newly released
soybean cv. ‘Samsoy 1’ which is high yielding, resistant to both lodging and shattering.
Four levels of phosphorus (0, 13, 26 and 52 kg P/ha) and five plant densities (200,000,
300,000, 400,000, 500,000 and 600,000 pl/ha) were arranged in a factorial combi­
nation using a randomized complete block design with four replications.

Table 1 Physico-chemical properties o f top soil (0-30 cm) o f experimental fields

YEAR
Composition 1984 1985 1987

Physical characteristics
Clay (%) 16.0 14.0 17.0
Silt (%) 30.0 35.0 34.0
Sand (%) 54.0 51.0 49.0
Textural class Sandy Sandy Sandy
loam loam loam
Chemical characteristics
pH (H20 ) 5.5 5.0 5.5
pH (CaCl'2) 50 4.5 4.9
Organic Carbon (%J 0.6 0.5 3.5
Available P (ppm;) 3.1 2.7 3.5
Total N (%) 0.04 0.04 0.06
Exchangeable bases
(Meq/100 gsoilQj
Ca 1.2 3.0 2.3
Mg 0.7 0.7 0.6
K 0.3 0.2 0.3
CEC 5.8 42 5.4
 Response o f soybean to phosphorus and plant density 13

Soil samples were taken upto a depth of 30 cm before fertilizer application

and analysed for physico-chemical properties (Table 1). The soil texture was
analysed by the Hydrometer method (Bouyoucos, 1951) and the textural class deter­
mined by using the soil texture triangle (USDA, 1960). Total soil nitrogen was
determined by the macro-kjeldhal procedure (Bremmer, 1965) and available
phosphorus by Bray and Kurtz (1945). The exchangeable cations were determined
by the acetic acid method (Reith, 1967).

Planting was done on plots containing 8 ridges, 60 cm apart and 6 m long.

Spacings of 8.3, 5.6, 4.2, 3.3 and 2.8 cm were used to achieve plant densities of
200,000, 300,000, 400,000, 500,000 and 600,000 plants/ha, respectively. The phos­
phorus fertilizer for each treatment was side-banded at planting using single super­
phosphate (16% P20 5). The use of single superphosphate ensured the concurrent
addition of both calcium and sulphur which are required by soybean. Because the
experimental sites were kept fallow for long, a uniform dose of 20 kg N/ha was
applied in all plots using calcium ammonium nitrate.

Weeds was controlled by spraying the plots with the pre-emergence herbicide
Galex @ 2.25 kg a.i./ha (metolachlor+metabromuron in 1:1 ratio). Subsequently,
one hoe-weeding was carried out six weeks later to control weeds that emerged at
later stages.

Yield and yield components were determined at maturity by harvesting the

four inner rows (14.4 m2). The harvested pods were hand-threshed for recording
grain yield. The number of pods per plant and 100-seed weight were determined
from a sub sample taken from the net plot yields.

RESULTS

Effect of phosphorus
Soybean responded positively to the application of P in all the years (Table 2).
Grain yield increased as much as 53-150% with the application of 26 kg P/ha as
compared to unfertilized plots. Above 26 kg P/ha, there was no significant increase
in grain yield, except in 1987 when response was up to 52 kg P/ha, might be due to
well distribution of rainfall (Fig. 1) in 1987. The relationship between phosphorus
and grain yield was best described by quadratic equation in the different years :
1984 : Y = 1164.1 + 33.4—0.352
1985 : Y = 1045.0+44.1—0.582
1987 : Y = 643.6+46.7—0.452
 Chkzey, Yayock and Ahmed
LE6EN6
B8J

m i.

1987
Month hr
mconia>/B)

Fig. 1. Rainfall distribution at 10 days interval at Samaru, Nigeria during 1983, 1984 and 1987 aqd long term
(<50 years) monthly means
 Response o f soybean to phosphorus and plant density 15

Table 2. Seed weight per plant and seed yield o f soybean as influenced by phosphorus and plant density

Seed weight/plant (g) Seed yield/ha (kg)

Treatment 1984 1985 1987 1984 1985 1987

Phosphorus (P kg/ha)
0 17.2b 6.2b 16.5b 1142.0c 1039.0c 641.2d
13 20.2ab 8.7a 21.3a 1597.0b 1536.0b 1204.5c
26 20.8ab 9.1a 21.7a 1747.9ab 1786.0a 1601.2b
52 23.0a 10.3a 24.3a 1943.0a 1765.0a 1957.0a
S E (± ) 1.5 0.9 1.6 92.4 51.1 114.0
Population density
(000’ plants/ha
200 24.0a 12.9a 20.3 1463.0b 1334.0c 1384.8
300 21.7ab 8.4b 19.3 1460 0b 1481.Obc 1487.9
400 23.1a 8.3b 22.3 1634.0ab 1533.0b 1342.6
500 16.7bc 6.6 b 21.3 1842.0a 1564 0b 1336.9
600 16.0c 7.5b 21.7 1636.Oab 1746.0a 1203.1
SE ( ± ) 1.7 1.0 1.8 103.6 57.3 127.4

Means within any one year of the same treatment followed by unlike
letters are significantly different at P=0.05

The number of pods per plant and pod weight per plant increased significantly
from zero to 26 kg P/ha (Table 3). Increase in pod yield ranged between 33.3 and
and 48.3 while increases in pod number were between 31.8 and 66.3 per cent.
Table 4 show the effect o fP on the number of branches per plant and 100-seed
weight. Compared with unfertilized plots, number of branches was higher by
17.0- 21.3% with 26 kg P/ha, while 100-seed weight was higher by 13.9% with 26 kg
P/ha and 28.6% with 52 kg P/ha.
Effect of plant density
While increasing plant densities enhanced the grain yield per unit of land area,
production per plant declined significantly (Table 2). The increasing plant density
from 200,000 to 500,000 plants/ha increased grain yield per unit area by 17-26%
but yield per plant declined by 43.7-95.5 per cent.
The number of pods per plant declined by 44.2-55.1% and pod yield by
60.1- 84.9% with increasing plant density from 200,000 to 500,000 plants/ha
(Table 3). It might be due to interplant competition for water, light and nutrients.
Similarly, the number of branches decreased by 17.8 to 29.7% (Table 4). Hundred
seed weight was not influenced by increasing plant density (Table 4).
 16 Chiezey, Yayock and Ahmed

Table 3. Number of pods per plant and pod weight per plant of soybean as influenced by phosphorus
and population density

Number o f pods/plant Pod weight/plant (g)

Treatment 1984 1985 1987 J984 1985 1987

Phosphorus (P kg/ha)
0 87.4 37.7b 95.5b 20.3 11.66 28.5b
13 107.1 62.7a 119.2ab 25.9 15.5ab 37.8a
26 100.5 60.5a 125.9a 27.5 17.2a 38.0a
52 104.1 64.0a 137.9a 23.4 18 0a 41.4a
SE ( ± ) 8.0 6.0 7.6 2.1 1.6 2.7
Population density
(000’ plants/ha)
200 120.3a 76.3a 111.5 31 8a 22.0a 35.1
300 I06.1ab 59.2b 117.3 26.9a 15.6b 34.3
400 103.7ab 52.3b 119.5 28.3a 15.5b 37.2
500 83 4b 49.2b 135.0 19.8b 11.9b 37.6
600 85.2b 46.2b 115.5 15.7b 12.9b 37.9
SE ( ± ) 9.0 6.7 84 24 1.7 5.9

Means within any one year of the same treatments followed by unlike
letters are significantly different at P=0.05.

Table 4. Number o f branches per plan! and 100-seed weight o f soybean as influenced by phosphorus and
population density

Number of branches/plant 100-seed weight (g)

Treatment 1984 1985 1987 1984 1985 1987

Phosphorus (P kg/ha)
0 9.4c 6.1b 6.5c 10.8c 8.6 9.4c
13 !0.4ab 6.9ab 7.4b 11.2b 8.9 10.1b
26 11.0a 7.4a 7 6a 11.6b 8.7 10.2b
52 9.8bc 7.9c 8.4a 12.3a 8.6 10.6a
0.41 0.49 0.30 0.80 0.12 0 .|3
SE(=F)
Population density
(000’ plants/ha)
200 11.69 8 5a 8.1a 11.6 85 10.2
300 10.3ab 7.3ab 7.7ab 11.6 8.7 9.9
9.8b 7.0ab 7.0b 11 4 8.6 19.3
400
9.8b 6.5b 7.6ab 11 4 8.6 10.1
500
9.3b 6.5b 66b 11 0 8.9 10.0
600
SE ( ± ) 0.4b 0.55 0.30 0.20 0.13 0.14

Means within any one year for the same treatment followed by
unlike letters are significantly different at P=0.05
 Response o f soybean to phosphorus and plant density 17

DISCUSSION
The observed response of soybean to applied phosphorus fertilizer was antici­
pated in view of the low level of the nutrient in different experimental plots (Table 1).
Grain yield continued to increase with the application of P upto 26 kg P/ha.
Applying the nutrient above 26 kg P/ha rarely increased grain yield, indicating that
the amount was optimum to meet the requirements of the crop. Using regression
equations, maximum grain yield was attained between 38 and 51 kg P/ha, but grain
yield at these levels of P was not significantly different than at 26 kg P/ha. Similar
results were also obtained by Goldsworthy and Heathcote (1964), Afolabi and
Osiname (1979), and Pal e t a l. (1989), thus indicating that soybean rarely responds
above 26 kg P/ha.
The observed decline in the yield and yield components of individual plant at
high densities could be associated with inter-plant competition for available nutrients
and water. However, increase in grain yield per unit area with increased plant
density indicated the ability of more plants to compensate for loss in yield by
individual plants. Similar observations have also been reported by Lueschen and
Hicks (1977) and Hoggard e t a l (1978). On an average, the highest grain yield was
obtained at plant density of 500,000 plants/ha.
These results suggest that soybean cv. Samsoy 1 can be cultivated successfully
with the application of 26 kg P/ha by keeping 500,000 plants/ha under agro-climatic
conditions of Sainaru, Nigeria.
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