Sensitivity to Drought Stress of Three Soybean Cultivars During Different Growth Stages

Three soybean ( Glycine max L.) culivars, Lee-74, Wright , and Ra 401 , were subjected to 100 % (control), 75 %, and 50 % of field capacity during vegetative (VI), flowering (R2), and pod-filling (R4) stages in greenhouse and field studies. Stress applied at R2 significantly reduced the yield in the greenhouse, while in the field, the maximum reduction was observed when the plants were subjected to stress at R4. Stress during VI reduced the yield components less than stress applied during R2 or R4 stages in both studies. The pod number and seed weight were the yield components most affected by drought stress, and the number of seeds per pod the least affected. Yield stress index was significantly correlated with the yield and its components. The reproductive stage was clearly more sensitive to drought than the vegetative stage. The cultivar Lee 74 had the highest yield and the second highest yield stress index whereas the cultivar Ra 401 had the lowest yield.