Soybean yield under a variable water environment is determined by the water taken up from the soil, or water uptake, and how efficiently the plant uses that water to form biomass and yield, or water use efficiency. A hypothesis is that cultivars with high water uptake yield well wet or irrigated environments but have yield penalties under water-limited conditions. And, that cultivars with high water use efficiency don’t increase in yield under irrigation but maintain stable yields under water-limited conditions. This project screens for commercial and breeding lines with different water uptake and water use efficiency to find the cultivars that perform better under irrigated conditions and those better in rain-fed conditions.

Key Benefactors:
farmers, agronomists, Extension agents