New soybean variety thrives in changing climate conditions, boosting crop yields.
The researchers studied a very early-maturing soybean variety to understand how different growing conditions affect its productivity. They used field observations, lab tests, and math to create a model of the variety's productivity. They found that plant height is influenced by rainfall and humidity, while the number of seeds per plant is closely related to seed weight. The number of branches on a plant decreases with higher air temperature, and the number of nodes on the main stem increases with more rain and higher temperatures. The attachment height of lower beans is linked to precipitation, and the number of beans on a plant is affected by air temperature. Overall, the study shows how specific traits of soybean plants are influenced by different environmental factors.