Variation in Pod Shattering in a RIL Population and Selection for Pod Shattering Tolerance in Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr]

Pod shattering during the maturing stage causes a serious yield loss in soybean. It is the main limiting factor of soybean cultivation and mechanization. It is important to develop varieties suitable for mechanical harvesting and to develop energy-efficient agricultural machinery to save labor and costs. ‘Daewonkong,’ developed by the National Institute of Crop Science (NICS) in 1997, is an elite cultivar that occupies more than 80% of the soybean cultivation area in Korea because of its strong tolerance to pod shattering. The objectives of this study were to investigate the variation in pod shattering degree in a RIL population developed from a ‘Daewonkong’ parent and to select promising lines with pod shattering tolerance. ‘Daewonkong’ demonstrated a high level of tolerance to pod shattering compared to the ‘Tawonkong’ and ‘Saeolkong’ varieties, with no shattered pods after 72 hours of drying. Screening of pod shattering showed a clear distinction between the tolerant and susceptible varieties. Also, the distribution of shattering pod ratio in the two populations showed a similar pattern for three years. The promising lines with pod shattering tolerance included 27 lines in the ‘Daewonkong’בTawonkong’ population and 21 lines in the ‘Daewonkong’בSaeolkong’ population. The promising lines are expected to be widely used as breeding parents for creating soybean cultivars with pod shattering tolerance.