Evaluation of soybean accessions (Glycine max L.) for pod shattering resistance at ripening

The resistance to pod shattering is an important trait of the soybean crop, which helps to preserve the yield. This characteristic can be influenced by genotype, as well as by many environmental factors. The careful selection of cultivars resistant to pod shattering, combined with good practices during harvest, can greatly help to reduce the seed losses. The aim of the present study was to evaluate a part of the Bulgarian soybean (Glycine max L.) collection, stored in the National gene bank, for its resistance to pod shattering under different humidity conditions. The energy consumed to shattering a single pod and the proportion of pod shattering as a function of the moisture content, were also the subjects of the current study. The highest energy of pod shattering was reported for sample BGR3171, followed by BGR1827, BGR4177 and two Bulgarian varieties (Avigeya and Mira). The lowest energy was found for sample BGR37971. In a moisture range of 12% to 16%, about 60% of the studied soybean samples showed pod shattering. At humidity w < 8%, the proportion of pod shattering reached to 100%. As a result of the study, it was found that the soybean collection has a rich genetic potential for future breeding work in terms of pod shattering resistance.