High P Availability in Brazilian Cerrado Soils Reduces Nodulation and Grain Yield of Soybean

The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of phosphorus (P) levels on nodulation and soybean production components in Cerrado soils. The experimental design was randomized in blocks, with five replicates, and four consecutive crop seasons (2013/2014, 2014/2015, 2015/2016, and 2016/2017), being cultivated in the same experimental field area. In the first three crop seasons phosphate fertilization were carried out establishing the treatments of increasing levels of P: 0, 43.6, 87.3, 131.0, and 174.6 kg ha⁻¹, and an additional level (farm standard) of 42 kg ha⁻¹. The results of this work refer to the crop season 2016/2017 without different P application, evaluating the influence of content of previous crop seasons. The dry weight of roots, plant population, thousand grains weight, grain yield, nitrogen (N) and P content in leaves, number and dry weight of nodules were evaluated in the reproductive stages (R2 and R8) of soybean. Increasing levels of P in soil provided significant effects on nodulation, morphological components and production of soybean plants. Levels above 40 mg dm⁻³ of P available in soil provided a reduction in the number and dry weight of the nodules that are highly correlated to reduction on grain yield.