2021
Evaluating soybean variety performance and response to deer grazing
Contributor/Checkoff:
Category:
Sustainable Production
Keywords:
Abiotic stressAgricultureLand Use Water supply
Parent Project:
This is the first year of this project.
Lead Principal Investigator:
Luke Macaulay, University of Maryland
Co-Principal Investigators:
Nicole Fiorellino, University of Maryland
James Lewis Jr, University of Maryland
+1 More
Project Code:
21105236
Contributing Organization (Checkoff):
Institution Funded:
Brief Project Summary:

Protecting soybeans from deer damage can be complex, due to great variation in fields, the environment and even deer behavior. However, bare spots along timberlines and yield maps provide plenty of evidence that damage from deer can be costly. Farmers should take an integrated pest management approach to protecting their crops from deer. IPM tools for deer management include fencing, repellants, vegetation management and hunting. This project explored more about how forage soybeans provide a vegetative management tool, including how and where they have the greatest potential to limit deer feeding on commodity soybeans.

Key Benefactors:
farmers, agronomists, Extension agents, hunters, soybean breeders

Information And Results
Project Deliverables

Final Project Results

Update:
Please see attached report.

View uploaded report PDF file

We developed a more detailed understanding of the patterns of deer grazing on soybeans and how these patterns are influenced by precipitation, and gained better insights into yields that can be expected from 3 different forage soybean varieties and how they compared to two conventional soybean varieties. We found that group 5 soybeans produced the highest yields under moderate deer grazing, with the highest yields from a conventional 5.3 soybean, which yielded 54.1 bushels/acre, followed closely by a group 4.7 forage soybean. The latest maturing group 7 forage soybean yielded only 36.4 bu/acre, but may have served to attract deer away from other varieties when they would have been most vulnerable to yield losses from deer grazing. In terms of deer grazing patterns, we documented that 74% of grazing activity occurred at night, with 44% of all grazing activity occurring in just five days of June and July (fig. 2). Statistical analysis of precipitation patterns found that grazing was significantly affected by rainfall events, with decreased grazing activity during rainfall events, increasing grazing activity one day following rainfall, and even greater grazing activity the second day after rain (see table 2 and fig. 3).

The United Soybean Research Retention policy will display final reports with the project once completed but working files will be purged after three years. And financial information after seven years. All pertinent information is in the final report or if you want more information, please contact the project lead at your state soybean organization or principal investigator listed on the project.