By Laura Lindsey
Currently, most soybean fields in Ohio are at the flowering growth stage (R1-R2). (Some late-planted or re-planted soybean may still be at a vegetative stage.) Even as soybean plants begin to flower, they may only have 3-5 trifoliolates due to late planting and wet weather followed by dry conditions. However, even if plants have flowers and only a few trifoliolates, the plant will continue to add leaf area up to the R5 growth stage, which comes 4-6 weeks later. As long as the canopy is complete by the beginning of seed filling, the plant has the potential to reach full yield potential.
What does the soybean crop need to maximize yield during the flowering growth stage? While adequate soybean flowers are needed for subsequent reproductive development, soybeans are amazingly resilient to stress during flowering due to their ability to continue to develop flowers over several weeks. Flowering marks the beginning of rapid dry weight and nutrient accumulation rates. Therefore, duration of light interception and thermal energy/heat unit accumulation provide the potential for flower and pod retention and seed fill.
Misconceptions at the R1-R2 growth stage: There are several common misconceptions about soybean plants at the flowering growth stage.
Source : osu.edu