May 05, 2010
2010 U.S. Soybean Yields Estimated at 44 to 46 Bushels per Acre
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
With 15% of the 2010 U.S. soybean crop already planted, it looks like the soybean crop could get off to a good start just like the corn crop. An early start for soybeans is important, but it is not nearly as important as it is for the corn crop. The biggest advantage to planting the soybeans early is that it allows the plants to grow larger and to achieve a greater leaf area at the time when the solar radiation is at its peak on June 21st. With more leaf area, the plant can generally conduct more photosynthesis and thus have the potential for greater yields.
Soybeans are photoperiodic which means that they are triggered to go through their life cycle by the amount of daylight and darkness the plant encounters. There is a slight correlation between planting date and maturity, but the connection is stronger for late planted soybeans than it is for early planted soybeans. Generally, for every two days that soybeans are planted past their recommended planting date, the crop matures one day later than normal. That is one of the reasons why late planted double crop soybeans can sometimes run into frost problems before they mature. If soybeans are planted in late April as compared to mid-May, they generally do not mature any earlier.
For a number of years, the seed companies were primarily focused on introducing soybean varieties that were resistant to specific herbicides, but they have now started to focus on introducing traits designed to enhance the yield of soybeans as well as herbicide resistance. If there is no prolonged adverse weather this summer, this might be the year when we get the opportunity to test the maximum potential for these new soybean varieties.
With a good start to spring planting, I am going to start out the growing season optimistic and assume the weather will be normal this summer. For the 2010 U.S. soybean crop, I am going to assume that the nationwide yield will be in the range of 44 to 46 bushels per acre.