Inoculation and Soil Texture Effects on Yield and Yield Components of Mungbean

Mungbean [Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek] is a short-duration and relatively drought-tolerant crop grown predominantly in the tropics. This grain legume can improve soil fertility through biological nitrogen (N) fixation. To assess the effects of Bradyrhizobium (group I) inoculation on yield and yield attributes of mungbean, a greenhouse study was conducted during Fall 2016 with two mungbean cultivars (‘Berken’ and ‘OK2000’), two inoculum treatments (inoculated and uninoculated), and two soil textures (loamy sand and silt loam). Pots were laid out in a completely randomized design and treatment combinations were replicated seven times. The main effects of cultivar and soil texture significantly (P ≤ 0.05) affected mungbean seed weight and plant residue mass. Seed yield (13%), plant residue (22%), and protein content (6%) of OK2000 were significantly higher than Berken cultivar. A 31% seed yield and 40% plant residue increase were recorded on silt loam soil compared to loamy sand soil. Significant increase in plant height (18%) and number of pods per plant (21%) were also recorded when mungbean plants were grown on silt loam compared to loamy sand soil. Bradyrhizobium inoculation significantly increased the number of pods per plant, the number of seeds per plant, and seed yield. [Cultivar × inoculation] and [cultivar × soil texture] interactions had significant (P ≤ 0.05) effects on number of seeds per pods and plant height, respectively. Understanding the agronomic practices and soil physical properties that may limit mungbean production could help in optimizing its establishment and growth in non-traditional growing areas.