Best cultivar: Optimization of maturity group classification for reaching soybean yield potential

Abstract

Context

The expansion of the sowing season, motivated by the search for greater yield potential and higher efficiency of the production system, results that the classification system of relative maturity groups cannot satisfactorily capture the interaction between genotype and environment in a subtropical environment. Knowledge of the duration of the crop development cycle at the time of sowing, combined with the optimal agronomic cycle, makes it possible to optimize the positioning of cultivars and increase crop yield.

Objective

The objective of this study was twofold: (i) to propose optimization in maturity group classification using adjusted 3rd degree polynomial equations have been fundamental to understanding the developmental cycle of soybean in relation to sowing date. in the maturity group classification system taking into account the sowing date to achieve yield potential and (ii) to develop a framework for indicating soybean cultivars based on the optimal agronomic cycle for Southern Brazil.

Methods

A database containing 72 field experiments in eleven agricultural years (from 2010 to 2011–2022–2023), covering 44 municipalities in Southern Brazil, was used to estimate the development cycle and the optimal agronomic cycle depending on the sowing date. To better represent the development cycle of soybean as a function of sowing date, the maturity group classification system was further developed, using adapted 3rd order polynomial equations.

Results and conclusions

The optimal agronomic cycle ranged from 141 to 111 days. A framework to indicate soybean cultivars based on the optimal agronomic cycle resulted in the Best Cultivar software, which serves as a tool for the best positioning of cultivars at the sowing times and thus maximizes the interaction between genotype and environment.