The effect of micronutrient foliar application on yield,seed quality and some biochemical traits of soybean cultivars under drought stress

Abstract

This experiment carried out as split plot factorial based on a randomized complete block design with three replications during two consecutive years (2015–2016). The main plot consisted of drought stress: complete irrigation, irrigation withholding at R1 stage, irrigation withholding at R2 stage and subplots included foliar application of micronutrients: distilled water (control), zinc sulfate, manganese sulfate and zinc sulfate?+?manganese sulfate and cultivar as: Williams and Zan elite. The results showed that proline and linoleic acid were increased significantly, but chlorophyll a and b, seed yield, protein percentage, oleic and linolenic acids were decreased significantly by irrigation withholding. Also, the maximum values of chlorophyll b, protein percentage and linolenic acid were achieved by Williams. The significant increasing effect of zinc was found on the maximum root and stem proline, chlorophyll b, and oleic, linolenic and linoleic unsaturated fatty acids, meanwhile the maximum leaf proline was obtained by manganese sulfate.