Hill drop sowing of soybean with different number of plants per hole

• Published in: Ciência rural 2018-01, Vol.48 (5)
• Main Authors: Santos, Esmael Lopes dos, Agassi, Victor José, Chicowski, Alessandro Sartor, Franchini, Julio Cezar, Debiasi, Henrique, Balbinot Junior, Alvadi Antonio
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural production; AGRONOMY; Cultivars; Glycine max L; Planting density; Seasons; Seeds; Soybeans; spatial plant arrangement; spatial uniformity of plant distribution; Variance analysis
• ISSN: 0103-8478; 1678-4596; 1678-4596
• DOI: 10.1590/0103-8478cr20170389

In the last few cropping seasons, some soybean producers have tested the application of a hill drop sowing method, usually from three to four seeds every 30 to 40cm. However, there is a lack of information in the literature about the effect of this practice on soybean performance. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a hill drop sowing with different number of plants per hole on soybean performance. The study was conducted in Londrina - PR, Brazil, during the 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2016/17 cropping seasons. The experiment was a randomized complete block design with four replications and a 2x5 factorial scheme. The first factor consisted of two soybean cultivars, BRS 359RR and NK 7059RR analyzed in the first two cropping seasons and BRS 359RR and BRS 1010IPRO in the last cropping season. The second factor was constituted by five in-hill hole-spacing treatments (HS) (8, 16, 24, 32 and 40cm), with rows spaced 50cm apart. To maintain the same plant density in all treatments (270,000 plants ha-1), sowing was performed manually, being then thinned out. After thinning, the distribution was one plant per hole at HS8, 2 plants at HS16, 3 plants at HS24, 4 plants at HS32, and 5 plants at HS40. The agronomic performance of soybean in hill drop sowing with different number of plants per hole is similar to that of an equidistant distribution of plants. RESUMO: Nas últimas safras, alguns produtores de soja vêm testando a semeadura agrupada de plantas na linha de semeadura, em geral de três a quatro sementes a cada 30 a 40cm. No entanto, há carência de informações na literatura sobre o efeito dessa prática no desempenho da cultura da soja. O objetivo desse trabalho foi avaliar o desempenho agronômico da soja em diferentes números de plantas por cova. O trabalho foi conduzido em Londrina, PR, nas safras 2013/14, 2014/15 e 2016/17. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos completos casualizados, com quatro repetições e esquema fatorial 2x5. O primeiro fator foi constituído por duas cultivares de soja (BRS 359RR e NK 7059RR nas duas primeiras safras e BRS 359RR e BRS 1010IPRO na última safra) e o segundo por cinco espaçamentos entre plantas (EP) nas linhas de semeadura (8, 16, 24, 32 e 40cm), sendo utilizado o espaçamento de 50cm entre linhas. Para manter a mesma densidade de plantas em todos os tratamentos (270.000 plantas ha-1), a semeadura foi realizada manualmente. Após o desbaste, a distribuição foi de uma planta por cova em EP8, duas plantas