Phosphorus （P） is an essential element for plant growth and yield. Improving phosphorus use efficiency of crops could potentially reduce the application of chemical fertilizer and alleviate environmental damage. Soybean （Glycine max （L.） Merr.） is sensitive to phosphorus （P） in the whole life history. Soybean cultivars with different P efficiencies were used to study P uptake and dry matter accumulation under different P levels. Under low P conditions, the P contents of leaf in high P efficiency cultivars were greater than those in low P efficiency cultivars at the branching stage. The P accumulation in stems of high P efficiency cultivars and in leaves of low P efficiency cultivars increased with increasing P concentration at the branching stage. At the late podding stage, the P accumulation of seeds in high and low P efficiency cultivars were 22.5 and 26.0%, respectively; and at the mature stage were 69.8 and 74.2%, respectively. In average, the P accumulation in whole plants and each organ was improved by 24.4% in high P efficiency cultivars compared to low P efficiency cultivars. The biomass between high and low P efficiency cultivars were the same under extended P condition, while a significant difference was observed at late pod filling stage. At the pod setting stage, the biomass of high P efficiency cultivars were significant greater （17.4%） than those of low P efficiency cultivars under high P condition. Meanwhile, under optimum growth conditions, there was little difference ofbiomass between the two types of cultivars, however, the P agronomic efficiency and P harvest index were significant higher in high P efficiency cultivars than those in low P efficiency cultivars.
AO XueGUO Xiao-hongZHU QianZHANG Hui-junWANG Hai-yingMA Zhao-huiHAN Xiao-riZHAO Ming-huiXIE Fu-ti
Super high-yielding soybean cultivar Liaodou 14, soybean cultivars from Ohio in the United States, and the common soybean cultivars from Liaoning Province, China, with similar geographic latitudes and identical pod-bearing habits were used as the study materials for a comparison of morphological traits and production characteristics to provide a theoretical basis for the breeding of improved super high-yielding soybean cultivars. Using a randomized block design, different soybean cultivars from the same latitude were compared under conventional and unconventional treatments for their production characteristics, including morphological traits, leaf area index （LAI）, net photosynthesis rate, and dry matter accumulation. The specific characteristics of the super high-yielding soybean cultivar Liaodou 14 were analyzed. The results showed that the plant height of Liaodou 14 was significantly lower than that of the common cultivars from Liaoning, whereas the number of its main-stem nodes was higher than that of the cultivars from Ohio or Liaoning. A high pod density was observed in Liaodou 14 under conventional treatments. Under both conventional and unconventional treatments, the branch number of Liaodou 14 was markedly higher than that of the common cultivars from Liaoning, and its branch length and leaf inclination angle were significantly higher than those of common cultivars from Liaoning or Ohio. Only small changes in the leaf inclination angle were observed in Liaodou 14 treated with conventional or unconventional methods. Under each treatment, Liaodou 14 exhibited the lowest amplitude of reduction in SPAD values and net photosynthesis rates from the grain-filling to ripening stages; the cultivars from Ohio and the common cultivars from Liaoning exhibited more significant reductions. Liaodou 14 reached its peak LAI later than the other cultivars but maintained its LAI at a higher level for a longer duration. Under both conventional and unconventional treatments, Liaodou 14 produced a higher yield than the ot
This study was conducted with two soybean cultivars, Liaodou 13 (L13, phosphorus (P)-efficient) and Tiefeng 3 (T3, P-inefficient), to investigate the effects of biochar on soybean yield and photosynthetic physiological parameters, at four biochar application rates (0, 1, 5, and 10%, w/w), and two fertilization treatments (0 and 150 kg ha–1). Grain yield, plant biomass, P accumulation, leaf net photosynthetic rate (Pn), chlorophyll index (Chl), nitrogen balance index (NBI), sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS), and sucrose synthase (SS) activities, soluble sugar, sucrose and starch contents, and leaf area duration (LAD) were measured. Biochar had positive effects on Pn, Chl, NBI, SPS, and SS activities, and leaf soluble sugar, sucrose, and starch contents of both genotypes, these effects increased with biochar application rate. L13 benefited more efficiently from biochar than T3 did, as the grain yield of L13 significantly increased by 31.0 and 51.0%, at 5 and 10% biochar, respectively, while that of T3 increased by 40.4 at 10% biochar application rate, as compared with controls. The combined application of biochar and fertilizer boosted the positive effects described, but no difference was found for grain yield in L13 among biochar application rates, while grain yield of T3 continually increased with biochar rate, among which, 1% biochar combined with 150 kg ha–1 fertilizer resulted in T3 yield increment of more than 23%, compared with the application of 150 kg ha–1 fertilizer alone. Altogether, our results indicated that the application of biochar enhanced carbon assimilation in soybean, resulting in increased biomass accumulation and yield. Differences in genotypic responses to biochar highlight the need to consider specific cultivars and biochar rate, when evaluating the potential responses of crops to biochar.
