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Glycine max (L.) Merr.
Fabaceae
Soybean
Source: James A. Duke. 1983. Handbook of Energy Crops. unpublished.
- Uses
- Folk Medicine
- Chemistry
- Description
- Germplasm
- Distribution
- Ecology
- Cultivation
- Harvesting
- Yields and Economics
- Energy
- Biotic Factors
- References
Seeds furnish one of the world's most important sources of oil and protein.
Unripe seeds are eaten as vegetable and dried seeds eaten whole, split or
sprouted. Processed they give soy milk, a valuable protein supplement in
infant feeding which also provides curds and cheese. Soy sauce made from the
mature fermented beans, and soy is an ingredient in other sauces. Roasted
seeds used as a coffee substitute. The highly nutritious sprouts are readily
consumed in Asia. Seeds yield an edible, semi-drying oil, used as salad oil
and for manufacture of margarine and shortening. Oil used industrially in
manufacture of paints, linoleum, oilcloth, printing inks, soap, insecticides,
and disinfectants. Lecithin phospholipids obtained as a byproduct of the oil
industry, used as a wetting and stabilizing agent in food, cosmetic,
pharmaceutical, leather, paint, plastic, soap, and detergent industries. Soy
meal is very rich protein feeding stuff for livestock for which there is an
increasing demand. Meal and soy bean protein used in manufacture of synthetic
fiber, adhesives, textile sizing, waterproofing, fire-fighting foam and many
other uses. Soy flour prepared from the whole beans, producing a full-fat
flour with about 20% oil, that from mechanically-expressed meal gives low-fat
flour with 56% oil; that prepared from solvent-extracted meal gives defatted
flour with about 1% oil. The flour is used in bakery and other food
products; and as additives and extenders to cereal flour and meat products, and
in health foods. The vegetative portions of plant used for silage, hay,
pasture or fodder, or may be plowed under as a green manure. The straw can be
used to make paper, stiffer than that made from wheat straw.
Old Chinese herbals suggest that the soybean was a specific remedy for the
proper functioning of the bowels, heart, kidney, liver, and stomach. A
decoction of the root is said to be astringent. The meal and flour are used to
prepare diabetic foods due to the small amount of starch contained therein.
Soybean diets are valued for acidosis. Since soybean oil has a high proportion
of unsaturated fatty acid, it is recommended, like safflower, poppyseed, etc.
to combat hypercholesteremia. Commercial grades of natural lecithin, often
derived from soybean, are reported to contain a potent vasodepressor.
Medicinally lecithin is indicated as a lipotropic agent. Soybean is listed as
a major starting material for stigmasterol, once known as an antistiffness
factor. Sitosterol, also a soy byproduct, has been used to replace diosgenin
in some antihypertensive drugs.
Raw seeds of Glycine max have been reported to contain per 100 g, 139
calories, 68.2% moisture, 13.0 g protein, 5.7 g fat, 11.4 g carbohydrate, 1.9 g
fiber, 1.7 g ash, 78 mg Ca, 158 mg P, 3.8 mg Fe, 0.40 mg thiamine, 0.17 mg
riboflavin, 1.5 mg niacin, and 27 mg ascorbic acid. Sprouts contain per 100 g
(edible portion): 62 calories, 81.5% moisture, 7.7 g protein, 1.8 g fat, 8.0 g
total carbohydrate, 0.7 g fiber, 1.0 g ash, 52 mg Ca, 58 mg P, 1.1 mg Fe, 30 mg
Na, 279 mg K, 25 mg b-carotene equivalent, 0.19 mg thiamine, 0.15 mg
riboflavin, 0.8 mg niacin, and 10 mg ascorbic acid. Dried yellow seeds are
reported to contain 400 calories, 10.2% moisture, 35.1 g protein, 17.7 g fat,
32.0 g carbohydrate, 4.2 g fiber, 5.0 g ash, 226 mg Ca, 546 mg P, 8.5 mg
riboflavin, and 2.2 mg niacin. The Wealth of India (C.S.I.R., 19481976)
indicated the mineral composition (percentage on fresh weight basis) 2.09 K,
0.38 Na, 0.22 Ca, 0.0081 Fe, 0.0012 Cu, 0.24 Mg, 0.59 P, 0.02 Cl, 0.0032 Mn,
0.406 S, 0.0022 Zn, and 0.007 Al; I, Mo, B, Ni, and Si are also reported.
Green feed of soy contains 12.56% fiber, 23.7 fiber, 52.1 N-free extract, 2.2
ether extract, 1.9 CaO, 0.57 P2O5, 1.4 MgO, and 2.4% K2O. The hay contains
15.0% crude protein, 29.1 fiber, 42.6 N-free extract, 1.3 ether extract, 12.0
total ash, 2.9 CaO, 0.60 P2O5, 1.2 MgO, 0.3 Na2O, and 2.0% K2O. Soybean straw
contains 16.0% moisture, 7.4 protein, 2.0 ether extract, 28.3 N-free extract,
26.1 fiber, and 10.2% fiber. Nutritional analyses of dozens of soybean
products appear in the Food Composition Table for Use in East Asia. The
sprouts, now popular among health fadists, contain 86.3% water, 6.2 protein,
1.4 fat, 5.3 carbohydrates, 0.8 ash, and per 100 g sprout, 48 mg Ca, 67 mg P, 1
mg Fe, 180 IU vitamin A, 0.23 mg thiamin, 0.20 mg riboflavin, 0.8 mg niacin,
and 33.8 mg vitamin C. Soybean lecithin contains 11.7% palmitic acid, 4.0
stearic, 8.6 palmitic, 9.8% oleic, 55.0 linoleic, 4.0 linolenic, and 5.5% C20
to C22 acids (including arachidonic). A globulin, glycinine, accounts for
8090% of the total nitrogen protein of the seed. Glycinine contains 1.1%
cystine, 1.8 methionine, 5.4 lysine, 1.7 tryptopbane, 2.1 threonine, 9.2
leucine, 2.4 isoleucine, 4.3 phenylalanine, 3.9 tyrosine, 2.2 histidine, 1.6
valine, 8.3 arginine, 0.7 glycine, 1.7 alanine, 5.7 aspartic acid, 19.0
glutamic acid, and 4.3% proline. Glycine has been reported to contain
betaine, choline, guanidine, hydrocyanic acid, isovaleraldehyde, maltose,
oxalic acid, saponin, trigonelline, and tryptophane.
Bushy, rather coarse annual herb; stems up to 1.8 m tall, sometimes vine-like,
terete toward the base, more or less angled and sulcate to subquadrangular
above, grey brownish or tawny, hirsute to pilose with pale hairs; leaves
pinnately trifoliolate, their petioles 220 cm long, from subterete and
sparsely pilose or glabrescent to strongly angled, sulcate and hirsute, the
rachis 0.53 cm long, the stipules broadly ovate, abruptly acuminate, 37 mm
long, conspicuously several-nerved more or less strigose; leaflets membranous,
broadly ovate, suborbicular, oval or elliptic-lanceolate, 314 cm long, 2.510
cm broad, the terminal seldom appreciably larger than the lateral which is
usually more or less inequilateral, generally acute but frequently obtuse and
mucronulate, occasionally deltoid-acuminate, tapering to rounded or subtruncate
at base, usually sparsely silky-strigose on both surfaces or glabrate above,
occasionally rather densely strigose-velutinous below, their petiolules 1.54
mm long, usually densely hirsute, stipels narrowly lanceolate to setaceous,
13.5 mm long, bracts from broadly to narrowly lanceolate 4.55.5 mm long,
several-nerved, strigose; racemes axillary, irregular, often leafy, very short,
1035 mm long, usually rather compactly few-(58) flowered, the peduncle and
pedicels often reduced and concealed by a densely hirsute vesture, the flowers
sometimes single or paired in the lower axils; bractlets from broadly to
narrowly lanceolate, 23 mm long, strigose, caducous; flowers on usually
densely hirsute to glabrescent pedicels 0.253 mm long; calyx 57 mm long,
setose to appressed-hirsute or strigose, the teeth subequal, lanceolate to
lanceolate-attenuate, the upper pair generally united to above the middle the
bracteoles setaceous, appressed, setose, 2.53.25 mm long; corolla white, pink,
greenish blue, violet or purple, 4.57 mm long, the standard
suborbicularobovate to subreniform, emarginate, somewhat longer than the
narrowly oblong wings which much exceed the keel, porrect or somewhat upturned
near the apex; pod oblong, subfalcate, pendant, 2575 mm long, 815 mm broad,
coarsely hirsute or setose, the bristly hairs up to 2.5 mm long,
yellowish-brown; seeds 23 per pod, ovoid to subspherical or irregularly
rhomboidal, 611 by 58 mm, greenish cream or grayish-olive to reddish black,
smooth, the caruncle scalelike, membranous, erect or appressed, about one-third
to one-half the width of the hilum. Fl. summer, fr. fall; varying as to
locality.
Plants extremely variable and many varieties and cultivars named or developed,
bred for resistance to diseases, for flowering-time control, climatic and
edaphic conditions and oil or protein content. Agricultural agents should be
consulted for the best local cv. Thirty-six trivial variants have been
described as subspecies and varieties, and many horticultural cvs have been
developed. Several germplasm collections of soybean are described in Hill
(1976). Assigned to the China-Japanese Center of Diversity, soybean or cvs
thereof is reported to exhibit tolerance to aluminum, bacteria, disease, frost,
fungi, hydrogen flouride, high pH, heavy soil, insects, laterites, limestone,
low pH, mycobacteria, nematodes, photo- period, pesticides, smog, smut, and
viruses. (2n = 40).
Widely cultivated, not known in the wild state. Believed to be a cultigen from
Glycine ussuriensis, reported to grow in China, Japan, Korea, Russia,
and Taiwan.
A subtropical plant, but its cultivation extends from the tropics to 52°N.
In the US it has its greatest development in the corn belt. I observed it as
one of the more frequent cultivars at 47°N in Nan Char, People's Republic of
China. It will not withstand excessive heat or severe winters. A short-day
plant. Requires 5 dm water for good crop. Grows best on fertile, well-drained
soils, but does tolerate a wide range of soil conditions; pH 6.06.5 preferred.
Soybean soils must contain the proper nitrogen-fixing bacteria. When grown on
the same land for 23 successive years, increasing yields are obtained year
after year. Crop suited to a dry zone, to a low or mid-country wet zone or
under irrigation. Soybeans will brow better than many crops on soils that are
low in fertility, droughty or poorly drained. Many high latitude cvs do very
poorly in low latitude. Ranging from Cool Temperate Moist to Wet through
Tropical Very Dry to Wet Forest Life Zones, soybean has been reported to
tolerate annual precipitation of 3.1 to 41.0 dm (mean of 108 cases = 12.8),
annual mean temperature of 5.9 to 27°C (mean of 108 cases = 18.2), and pH
of 4.3 to 8.4 (mean of 98 cases = 6.2).
Propagated by seed. Seedbed preparation for soybeans is similar to that for
corn or cotton, requiring very thorough cultivation to provide a deep loose
seedbed. Fall or early spring plowing is preferred by most growers to plowing
immediately before planting. Important that weeds be destroyed by light
disking, thorough harrowing or by use of cultivators, immediately preceding
planting, thus preventing the weeds from getting ahead of the soybeans. Soil
temperatures and day-length determine the best time to plant seeds at or (after
corn-planting time in most areas). Full-season cvs, which take most of the
growing season to mature, produce highest yields when planted with or soon
after corn. Rate of seeding varies with the area: in northern US, narrow rows
4668 cm wide produce the highest yields, in southern US there is little
advantage in rows closer than 90 cm for spring plantings. Soybeans are often
planted with planters designed for other crops but adapted for soybeans by
special plates. They are sometimes planted with a drill in which all the feed
cups are covered except those needed for row planting. A row planter provides
more uniform depth of seed (should be 2.55 cm). Seeding rate depends on cv or
size of seed, width of row and germination of seed. A good rate is one seed
per 2.5 cm of row. Close spacing encourages rapid growth of soybeans and aids
in weed control, but spacings closer than 2.5 cm may seriously increase
lodging. Excessive lodging causes difficulty in combining and reduces yields.
Seeds are often treated to protect them from soil-borne diseases. Seeds can be
treated any time before planting, even in the preceeding fall at harvest.
Soybeans need inoculation with a commercial culture of nitrogen-fixing bacteria
unless the bacteria are known to be in the soil. Soybean bacteria live in the
soil a number of years. Some farmers do not inoculate if nodulated soybeans
have been grown there in the past 45 years. Inoculants from other legumes are
not effective on soybeans. In the absence of nodulation, soybeans require
nitrogen fertilizer for maximum yields. Soybeans fit well into many rotations,
with corn, small grains or other legume; or in rotation with cotton, corn or
rice or planted after early potatoes and vegetables, or after winter grain; or
planted when grass clover or row crops have failed. Fertilizer needs vary with
the soil and the cropping system. Soil tests will indicate specific needs.
Fertilizer often is applied to other crops in the rotation and soybeans may not
need additional fertilizer. On soils of low fertility, fertilizers increase
yields. If plants are modulated properly, nitrogen fertilizer is not needed.
Fertilizer containing potash is injurious to germination when in direct contact
with the seed. Fertilizer may be applied in bands 57.5 cm to the side and 5
cm below the seed; or soil and fertilizer may be mixed if 2.5 cm is left
between fertilizer and seed. Broadcast fertilizer should be plowed under or
disked in. Soybeans are more acid tolerant than other legumes but will respond
to lime applications on acid soils. Weed competition is serious, and may
reduce yields by 50%. Early cultivation prevents weeds from
becoming established ahead of the soybeans. Both rowed and drilled soybeans
can be cultivated effectively with a rotary hoe, drag harrow, or weeder. This
equipment may be used even before the soybeans have emerged. Soybean plants
are easily injured by cultivating equipment just before and during emergence
from the soil. After emergence there is less danger of breaking the stems if
cultivation is done during the hot part of the day. For final cultivation, row
cultivating equipment is used. Cultivation should be no deeper than required
to destroy the weeds, and should be discontinued when cultivation causes damage
to the plants. In Taiwan, handweeding doubled the yield as compared to the
weedy control, (1600 vs 800 kg/ha). Alachlor, (2 kg/ha), chloramben (2),
linuron (0.25), and nitrolen (3 kg/ha) also doubled the yield, the first two
being most effective at controlling weed grasses. Soybeans are usually not
grown under irrigation, at least in the US. A good crop usually requires about
50 cm of water. In most areas where soybeans are grown, moisture is adequate.
Soybeans tolerate dry soil conditions before they bloom, but drought during the
pod-filling stage seriously reduces yields and seed quality. During this
stage, supplemental irrigation produces the most successful results. Contour
of the land largely determines the type of irrigation. Row or flood irrigation
may be used on land that has been leveled and prepared for it. Heavy,
infrequent irrigations usually give better results and require less labor than
frequent light irrigations. Time between irrigations depends on the type of
soil and the weather. The practice of double cropping of soybeans, usually by
alternating with a small grain crop such as barley or wheat, has increased in
warmer regions of the US. Typically two crops are obtained per year by seeding
small grain in fall and harvesting in Spring. Immediately after harvest,
soybeans are seeded to utilize the summer growing season. Both conventional
plowing and "no till" planting in the small grain stubble are widely used.
Technological improvements in planting equipment, better herbicides, and early
maturing cultivars of small grains have contributed to the increased use of
double cropping.
All seeds on a soybean plant mature at essentially the same time. Maturity of
the seed is accompanied by a rapid dropping of the leaves and drying of the
stems. Combines should be adjusted frequently during the day so as to reduce
losses due to splits and mechanical damage to the seeds. Harvesting loss can
amount to 1020% of the crop during combining. Combining seed for planting
requires special care to prevent mechanical damage. As seed moisture drops
below 12%, germination damage because of mechanical injury increases. The best
combine cylinder speed threshes properly but does not crack seed. Soybeans
require clean, dry bins for storage. The most important function of good
storage is to control moisture content. If the storage period is for one year,
the moisture content of every load should not be higher than 11% for a 5 year
storage, no higher than 10%. Excessive moisture may cause molding, heating,
and spoiling. If they are kept dry, beans will not deteriorate appreciably in
quality for a year or more. Viability deteriorates rapidly if seed is stored
beyond the first planting season following harvest. Soybeans make a versatile
emergency hay crop because they are adapted to a wide range of planting dates.
They should supplement and not substitute for alfalfa, clover or other hay
crops. Soybean hay is difficult to cure and loss of leaves and spoilage during
curing may reduce quality. There are many good hay or forage types of
soybeans, which usually have fine stems and small, dark-colored seed. When
drilled 57.5 bu/ha (136204 kg/ha), soy cvs can equal forage cvs in quantity
and quality of hay production. Time to cut soybean hay ranges from the time
the pods begin to form to the time when the seeds reach full size. A widely
used guide in harvesting soybean hay is to cut during the first favorable
weather after the seeds are half developed. A common method of curing soybean
hay is to leave it in the swath 1 or 2 days, then rake it into, small windrows.
Unless drying conditions are good, the windrows may need turning once or twice
before the hay is ready to bale. A roller-crusher attachment on the mower will
hasten the curing process because crushed stems lose moisture more rapidly than
intact stems. Soybeans require 75200 days, depending on cv and region.
Soybean hay yields average 5 MT/ha. Average yield of beans is about 1700 kg/ha
(60 bu/ha). High-yielding cvs, adapted to the locality and grown under proper
culture and favorable conditions will yield more than twice the average yield.
Some farmers have produced yields of more than 125 bu/ha (3400 kg/ha). In
Taiwan, TK-51 irrigated with 200 MT H2O/ha yielded 3.1 MT/ha beans; and 7.6 MT
DM/ha compared to the control with 2.8 MT beans and 7.1 MT DM. World
production of soybeans in 1970 was 46,521,000 MT grown on 35,019,000 ha,
yielding 1330 kg/ha. North America produced about 31 million MT; Mainland
China, 11.5 million MT; Latin America, 1.9 million MT; South America, 1.1
million MT; Asia, 1.2 million MT. Economically, this is the most important
grain legume crop in the world. World production in 1975 was 68,356,000 MT on
46,463,000 ha, averaging 1471 kg/ha. North America led with 42,317,000 MT, of
which the US, averaging 1909 kg/ha, produced 41,406,000 MT. Asia excluding
Russia produced 13,727,000 MT, averaging 828 kg/ha. South America produced
11,109,000 MT, averaging 1759 kg/ha. Russia produced 600,000 MT, averaging 750
kg/ha. Europe produced 442,000 MT, averaging 1369 kg/ha, Africa 96,000 MT,
averaging 482 kg/ha, Oceania 64,000 MT, averaging 1404 kg/ha. China was
estimated to be second to the US, producing 12,062,000 MT, Brazil third with
10,200,000 MT, Indonesia fourth with 560,000 MT, Mexico fifth with 545 MT. New
Zealand's reported yields were highest at 3000 kg/ha, Canada 2322, Paraguay
2160, Turkey 2000, Colombia 1913. In 1975 the effective demand for oilcake was
growing faster than for fats and oils. Soybean oil production was up 19% in
1970 over 1969, from 5.7 million MT to 6.8 million MT. Also prices were up as
much as 46%. On a protein cost/kg basis, soybean are a cheap source of
protein. Recent development in the utilization of soybean protein in the form
of concentrates, isolates, and textured protein for human consumption offers a
solution to the world's protein needs. The highest production yield reported
in Agricultural Statistics 1981 for 197980 was 6.25 MT/ha for Canada; the
lowest 1.54 MT for USSR with the US at 4.00 MT, Mexico at 4.68, Argentina at
5.25 and Colombia at 4.90. Note that these yields are about 21/2 times as high
as those reported by Wigham (1981) based on Agricultural Statistics 1977.
Correcting the Agricultural Statistics 1981, we get a more realistic 2510 kg/ha
for Canada, 1800 for the US, 1870 for Mexico, 2100 for Argentina, 1720 for
Brazil, 1960 for Colombia, 1350 for Paraguay, 917 for Romania, 1570 for
Yugoslavia and only 616 kg/ha for USSR. Dibb (1983) compares U.S. yields of
1,900 Kg/ha with 1,600 in the developing countries and a reported world record
of 7,400 Kg/ha. Wigham suggests 50006000 kg/ha as yield with top management
and optimum environmental conditions. With only 13 to 25% oil, this suggests a
top oil yield of 1500 kg/ha. As of June 15, 1981, soybean oil was $0.21/lb.,
compared to $0.38 for peanut oil, $1.39 for poppyseed oil, $0.65 for tung oil,
$0.33 for linseed oil, $0.275 for coconut oil, $0.265 for cottonseed oil, and
$0.232 for corn oil (Chemical Marketing Reporter, June 15, 1981). At $2.00 per
gallon, gasoline is roughly $0.25/lb. Pryde and Doty (1981) suggest an average
oil yield of only 319 kg/ha from 1,788 kg/ha seed. Telek and Martin (1981)
suggest average oil yields of 300 kg/ha.
In 1979, the low production yield was 150 kg/ha in Tanzania, the international
production yield was 1,660 kg/ha, and a world high production yield of 2,525
kg/ha in Egypt. (FAO, 1980a). Comparable yields from Duke (1981a), showing
bean:straw ratios of 1700:5000, 3100:7600 and 2800:7100 kg/ha, suggest a straw
factor of 2.5, the chaff factor estimated at one. The global average N
fixation reported for soybeans is close to 100 kg/ha, about half that of cowpea
(Duke, 1981a). Evans & Barber (Science 197: 333. 1977) put the N-fixation
figure at 5794 kg/ha/yr. Maximum growth rate of soybean is 27
g/m2/day for an efficiency of 4.4% (percentage utilization of solar
radiation). Maximum growth rate averaged over the usual growth period is
considerably lower. With production of 8.9 MT/ha, soybean converts solar
energy at an efficiency of only 0.16% (one-tenth that of Napier Grass), if
averaged over the whole year (Tropical sugarcane shows an efficiency of 1.0%,
cassava 0.8%). (Boardman, 1980). In the tropics, more than one crop per year
are possible, and in temperate regions, hot weather soybeans can follow cool
weather crops of alfalfa, crambe, peas, or wheat. (Furrow, Mar. 1981). The
residue coefficient, defined as the ratio of the weight of dry matter of
residue to recorded harvested weight, ranges from 0.55 to 2.60. Soybean
residue ratios are often assumed to be representative of other legumes. Upper
limits were determined by USDA experts (NAS, 1977a). Schapaugh and Wilcox in
1980 (Crop Science 20:529) studied 24 soybeans and reported harvest indices
ranging from 25 to 48%. They define harvest index as seed yield/aboveground
biomass. Thus their data show a seed:biomass ratio of 1:4 to 1:2, indicating
that we could multiply production figures by 24 to convert to biomass data.
As of June 15, soybean oil was $0.21/lb., compared to $0.38 for peanut oil,
$1.39 for poppyseed oil, $0.65 for tung oil, $0.33 for linseed oil, $0.275 for
coconut oil, $0.265 for cottonseed oil, and $0.232 for corn oil (Chemical
Marketing Reporter, June 15, 1981). At $2.00 per gallon, gasoline is roughly
$0.25/lb. According to the phytomass files (Duke, 1981a), annual productivity
for various Glycine spp. ranges from 1 to 20 MT/ha. In North Carolina,
where soybeans were the largest crop planted in 1979 and 1980, Harwood (1981)
concluded that soybean oil, the most widely available oil in the US, is
unlikely to be processed on-farm for oil. "The relatively low oil content
(18.5 percent) is more appropriate for large scale solvent extraction than
small-scale mechanical processing." Harwood puts the energetic net returns at
2:1 for soybeans, compared to more than 5:1 for sunflower, 3:1 for peanuts, and
ca 1:1 for cottonseed. Conversely, studying energy output/input ratios of 11
oilseeds, Goering (1981) found a legume lowest (peanut at 2.2) and highest
(soybean at 4.6) among unirrigated crops. Some irrigated crops had ratios of
less than 1.0. Of the eleven vegetable oils, soybean oil was lowest in price,
available in greatest domestic quantity and had the highest ratio for
non-irrigated vegetable oil crops (Goering, 1981). The gross heating value of
the oils was 8789% that of No. 2 diesel fuel (except castor oil, at 82%).
Eight parts of soybean oil were emulsified with two parts 190-proof ethanol,
using five parts of 1-butanol as emulsifier. The microemulsions performed as
well as diesel fuel and were able to start a cold engine (Goering, 1981). At
Seminar II (Vegetable Oils as Diesel Fuel; Oct. 21, 22, 1981), soybean oil at
$0.20 lb was calculated to cost $1.54 a gallon compared to $1.201.35 per
gallon for diesel. Comparing soybean oil with No. 2 diesel oil, Freedman and
Pryde (1981, VODF Seminar II) note that although density, cetane number, and
heat content are of the same order of magnitude, soybean oil is 10 times more
viscous and essentially non volatile. In VODF Seminar II, S. J. Clark suggests
several reasons why soybean is a viable alternative. (1) it is renewable (2)
its production is a well-established technology (3) it fixes its own nitrogen
(4) high protein soycake is a byproduct of soy oil production and (5) soy oil
esthers have fuel physical properties similar to diesel fuel. In that same
symposium (VODF Seminar II), Lipinsky et al. (1981) said "Soybean oil, due to
its availability and low cost relative to the other seed oils, is viewed as
having the most potential as an emergency diesel fuel substitute in the near
term."
Insects known to attack soybeans include corn earworms, Mexican bean beetles,
bean leaf beetles, velvetbean caterpillars, lesser cornstalk borers, stink
bugs, and other insects. Occurrence, prevalence and rate of reproduction of
soybean insects vary greatly from one part of the country to another. All
insects can be controlled by timely dusting or spraying with the proper
insecticide. Local agriculture agents should be consulted for advice. Mexican
bean beetles are said to ignore soybeans when snapbeans are planted nearby.
The more important fungal diseases of soybeans are: Alternaria sp.
(leaf spot), Cephalosporium gregatum (brown stem rot), Colletotrichum
truncatum (anthracnose), Cercospora kikuchii (purple seed stain),
C. sojina (frogeye leaf spot), Corynespora cassiicola (target
spot), Diaporthe phaseolorum var. caulivora (stem canker), D.
phaseolorum var. sojae (pod and stem blight), Erysiphe
polygoni and Microsphaera diffusa (powdery mildews), Fusarium
orthoceras (root rot), Glomerella glycines, Macrophomina phaseoli
(charcoal rot), Melanopsichium missouriense (soybean smut),
Nematospora coryli (yeast spot), Peronospora manshurica (downy
mildew), Phakopsora pachyrhizi (soybean rust), Phyllosticta
sojicola (Phyllosticta leaf spot), Phymatotrichum omnivorum (root
rot), Phytophthora megasperma (Phytophthora rot), Pythium ultimum
and P. debaryanum, Rhizoctonia leguminicola (black patch), R.
solani, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (stem rot), Sclerotium rolfsii
(blight), and Septoria glycines (brown spot). Virus diseases
include: soybean mosaic, bud blight, and yellow mosaic. Insect vectors are
known for all but one of the important soybean viruses, aphids being the most
important vector. Types of nematodes attacking soybeans include: sting
(Belonolaimus longicaudatus), ring (Criconemoides), spiral
(Helicotylenchus), lance (Hoplolaimus), pin (Paratylenchus),
root-lesion (Pratylenchus), stubby root (Trichodorus), and stunt
(Tylenchorrhynchus). In Taiwan, Thailand, and eastern Australia,
soybean rust is soybean's economically most important disease. As the soybean
spreads soybean rust becomes increasingly threatening to areas where it is not
yet known to occur, (e.g. the US). A direct relation between the amount of
carbohydrate exuded by germinating soybeans and seed rot caused by
Pythium has been demonstrated. In the US, yield losses of as much as
10% may be due to nematodes, with root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.)
causing 4%, soybean cyst nematodes (Heterodera glycines) 4%, and other
nematodes about 2%. As many as 50 species from 20 genera are reported to feed
on soybeans. Disease-resistant cvs of soybeans have been developed and are
available for production in most production areas. The use of
disease-resistant cvs is the most effective means of reducing losses from
diseases. Also available are cvs which resist the development of root-knot and
cyst nematodes. The use of resistant host plants may be the most desirable and
ecologically sound method for managing plant-feeding insect populations. On
soybean cvs with normal pubescence high populations of the potato leaf hopper,
Empaosca fabae, do not develop. The major insect pests for which
resistance has been found include the velvetbean caterpillar (Anticarsia
gemmatalis [Hubner]), Mexican bean beetle (Epilachna varivestis
[Mulsant]), tobacco budworm (Heliothis virescens [Fabricus]), corn
earworm (Heliothis zea [Boddie]), green cloverworm (Plathypena
scabra [Fabricus]), and the soybean looper (Pseudoplusia includens
[Walker]).
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fuels. Appendix 13. Vegetable oil as diesel fuel. Seminar 11. Oct. 2122, 1981.
USDA. Peoria, IL.
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and oils. AOCS Monograph 9. American Oil Chemists' Society. Champaign, IL.
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protein in the humid lowland tropics. p. 3753. In: Pryde, E.H., Princen, L.H.,
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Complete list of references for Duke, Handbook of Energy Crops
Last update Wednesday, January 7, 1998 by aw