Influence of Manganese and other micronutrients on soybean yield and seed quality

Abstract

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Soybean (Gycine max [L.] Merr.) is the most popular oil seed crop in the United States and is the most widely planted row crop in the state of Missouri. The majority of soybean oil is used to produce processed food for human consumption. The fatty acid composition of the oil has important implications for human health, and hence has been a topic of considerable research. In 1982, D.O. Wilson provided evidence that soybean seed protein, oil and fatty acid makeup are related with leaf tissue manganese (Mn) concentration. The overall objectives of this thesis was to determine if that relationship is true in new elite soybean cultivars, and to determine if glyphosate herbicide application and acetyl-CoA carboxylase activity influence soybean seed composition. Through four experiments I determined that foliar application of Mn increased whole-plant tissue Mn, leaf tissue Mn and seed tissue Mn concentrations. Manganese concentration within soybean did relate to seed fatty acid content of soybean seed. Supplemental Mn applied with or without post-emergent herbicides did not influence seed quality beyond the effects of other environmental factors. Application of glyphosate herbicide did not influence tissue Mn concentration or seed composition.