Studies on the effects of Bradyrhizobium inoculation on yield and yield attributes of mungbean

Abstract

Field studies with and without Bradyrhizobium was carried out with five mungbean varieties to observe the yield and yield attributes of mungbean. Five mungbean varieties viz. BARI Mung-2, BARI Mung-4, BARI Mung-5, BINA mung-2 and Barisal local, and the rhizobial inoculum (Bradyrhizobium strain BAUR-604) were used. The seeds and stover were dried and weighed adjusting at 14% moisture content and yields were converted to t/ha. The yield attributing data were recorded from 10 randomly selected plants. BARI Mung-2 produced the highest seed yield (1.03 t/ha in 2001 and 0.78 t/ha in 2002) and stover yield (2.24 t/ha in 2001 and 2.01 t/ha in 2002). Higher number of pods/plant was also recorded in BARI Mung-2, while BARI Mung-5 produced the highest 1000-seed weight. Application of Bradyrhizobium inoculant produced significant effect on seed and stover yields in both trials conducted in two consecutive years. Seed inoculation significantly increased seed (0.98 t/ha in 2001, 27% increase over control and 0.75 t/ha in 2002, 29% increase over control) and stover (2.31 t/ha in 2001 and 2.04 t/ha in 2002) yields of mungbean. Bradyrhizobium inoculation also significantly increased pods/plant, seeds/pod and 1000-seed weight. Inoculated BARI Mung-2 produced the highest seed and stover yields as well as yield attributes, such as pods/plant and seeds/pod. Key Words: Bradyrhizobium, inoculation, yield, yield attributes, mungbean. doi:10.3329/bjar.v33i3.1604 Bangladesh J. Agril. Res. 33(3) : 449-457, September 2008