Vegetative performance of soybean genotypes grown under different plant distributions in the field

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effect of plant distribution in the field on the physiological performance of soybean genotypes in the southern region of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The experiment consisted of twelve treatments involving two factors: factor A – 3 soybean genotypes (NA 5909 RR, NS 6006 IPRO, and NS 5959 IPRO) and factor B – 4 row spacings (0.17; 0.30; 0.45 and 0.60 meters). The experimental design was in randomized blocks in a factorial scheme (3x4), with four blocks. Each plot was 2.4 meters wide and 4 meters long, with 0.6 meters being discarded on each side of the plot for evaluations and 0.5 at each end of the line to serve as a border. Number of plants used was 330,000 plants ha-1. The experimental determinations carried out to evaluate vegetative performance were: plant height, stem diameter, area leaf matter, dry mass of stems, leaves and total in the full flowering phase of the crop. The performance, in general, of soybean genotypes is influenced by the distribution of the plants, with this response depending on the genotype and the production environment