Enhancing Morpho-Physiological Traits and Quality of Soybean (Glycine max L.) through Organic Manures and Biofertilizers in Gird Region of Madhya Pradesh, India

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted during the kharif season of 2025 at the Crop Research Centre, ITM University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India, to evaluate the effect of organic manures and biofertilizer seed inoculation on the morpho-physiological traits, yield and quality of soybean (Glycine max L.) variety JS-335. The experiment was laid out in a factorial randomized block design with three replications. The treatments comprised three organic manure sources, namely farmyard manure at 5 t ha⁻¹, vermicompost at 2 t ha⁻¹ and poultry manure at 1.5 t ha⁻¹, and three biofertilizer treatments, namely Rhizobium at 30 ml kg⁻¹ seed, phosphate-solubilising bacteria at 30 ml kg⁻¹ seed and potassium-solubilising bacteria at 30 ml kg⁻¹ seed, along with an absolute control. Observations were recorded on plant height, branches per plant, trifoliate leaves per plant, leaf area index, dry matter accumulation, crop growth rate, relative growth rate, grain yield, straw yield, harvest index, protein content and oil content. Among the organic manures, vermicompost at 2 t ha⁻¹ produced the highest plant height, branching, leaf area index and dry matter accumulation, and recorded grain yield of 1732.5 kg ha⁻¹, straw yield of 2857.0 kg ha⁻¹, protein content of 41.59% and oil content of 21.12%. Among the biofertilizers, Rhizobium seed treatment recorded the highest grain yield (1694.0 kg ha⁻¹), straw yield (2790.2 kg ha⁻¹), protein content (41.26%) and oil content (20.67%). The interaction between organic manures and biofertilizers was statistically non-significant. The results indicate that vermicompost application and Rhizobium seed inoculation improved soybean performance under the experimental conditions.