Soybean yield physiology and development of high-yielding practices in Northeast China

Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill), one of the most important crops in China, has been known to man for over 5000 years. Soybean production in China increased from 7.5 million Mg in 1978 to 26 million Mg in 2005. The largest production areas in China are in the Northeast China's three provinces, where soybean is spring seeded and grown as a full-season crop. Development of research programs and rapid adoption of technologies emerging from agricultural research by producers including a better understanding of the physiological processes of growth and development, improved cultivars and cultural practices, and a higher demand of the soybean processing industry has contributed much to the upward trend in on-farm yield and total production. Research on leaf area index (LAI), light interception and canopy photosynthesis, source–sink relationships, phytohormones, environmental stresses (drought and cold damage), development of cultivar selection, tillage systems, cultivation practices as well as weeds, insects and diseases during the last half century in Northeast China were reviewed. The intent is to document a summary of the understanding of soybean physiology and culture for high yields mainly from Chinese scientists’ perspective.