Photoperiod response in mungbeans (Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek)

Summary Five strains of mungbeans were grown at 8-, 12-, 13-, 14-, 15-, and 16-hour photoperiods in plant environmental chambers. The strains did not differ in days to flower at the 8- and 12-hour photoperiods, but flowering was delayed and plant height increased differentially when the photoperiod was increased beyond 12 hours. Two strains exhibited only slight sensitivity over the range of photoperiods studied. Two strains failed to flower within a 180-day period at the 16-hour photoperiod. The results corroborate observations in the First International Mungbean Nursery in which 28 strains grown at low latitudes (short photoperiods) had a narrow range in days to flowering, with the range becoming wider at the higher latitudes (longer photoperiods). The results provide evidence that response to photoperiod is important in the adaptation of mungbean strains in different latitudes.Contribution No. 6890 from the Missouri Agricultural Experiment Station.