New soybean cultivar expands growing range and season, resists soybean cyst nematodes

Researchers at Clemson University have developed and released a new soybean cultivar that will extend the soybean planting season and expand southward the regions where it's possible to profitably grow soybeans. It is also resistant to soybean cyst nematodes, which are the primary pest of soybeans.

"The Agustina soybean cultivar was developed and released by soybean breeders Benjamin Fallen and Emerson Shipe. Fallen said this cultivar possesses the long juvenile (LJ) trait which gives it the ability to produce high yields even when days get shorter and daylight hours are fewer. The LJ trait also allows the Agustina soybean to be grown in regions not suited for most existing soybean cultivars," Morning Ag Clips reports.

Most soybeans in the U.S. grow between 35 and 45 degrees north, roughly from Arkansas to Minnesota. But Agustina performs best from 22 to 29 degrees north, and performed well in tests even as far south as Tampico, Mexico.

Agustina seed will be sold commercially in the U.S. and Mexico beginning in the spring of 2018.

Soybean cyst nematode distribution. University of Kentucky Plant Pathology map; click on the image to enlarge it.