Temperature and the Development of the Taproot and Lateral Roots of Four Indeterminate Soybean Cultivars¹

Abstract

Soil temperatures vary with depth and time within and among years. An experiment was conducted to quantitatively evaluate the effects of temperature on the development of the taproot and lateral roots of four soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) cultivars at four temperatures. ‘Beeson’, ‘Hawkeye 63’, ‘Wayne’, and ‘Harosoy 63’ soybeans were grown at 17, 21, 25, and 29°C, using a specially designed, constant‐temperature, water bath system. The water bath was located in a temperature‐modified greenhouse where air temperature ranged from 20 to 35°C during the 12‐month experimental program. Serial measurements of taproot and lateral root tip location and number of primary nodes were recorded on alternate days until 19 days after emergence. A primary node was defined as the position at which one or more 1st order laterals emerge from the taproot. The rate of taproot extension increased with temperature, decreased with time at temperatures greater than 17°C, and was greater for the Beeson and Hawkeye 63 cultivars than for the Wayne and Harosoy 63 cultivars when averaged over time. The rate of lateral root extension increased with temperature, increased with time at temperatures less than 29°C, and was greater for the Beeson and Hawkeye 63 cultivars than for the Wayne and Harosoy 63 cultivars at temperature treatments greater than 17°C when averaged over time. The number of primary nodes varied with depth, time, and cultivar. The greatest number of nodes occurred 2.5 to 7.5 cm below the vermiculite surface. The Beeson and Hawkeye 63 cultivars had fewer primary nodes than the Wayne and Harosoy 63 cultivars. The results indicate that the depth of soybean root penetration can be altered to increase available water during periods of stress by cultivar selection and changes in soil temperature.

Soil Environment Constraints to Root Growth

“…(1984) suggest that corn (Zea mays) and soybean (Glycine max) roots follow the 16-17°C front down into the soil profile. These observations are consistent with similar conclusions by Stone and Taylor, (1983) based on a computer model and evidence from the literature.…”

Temperature responses of roots: impact on growth, root system architecture and implications for phenotyping

“…5a, b). This was a consequence of the localised nature of the root growth and branching response to temperature, which led to higher rooting densities in higher temperature (upper) regions of the medium, while lateral roots were strongly inhibited in formation and development at 15 C. Deep rooting is restricted at low temperature by reduced apical root elongation (Abbas Al-Ani and Hay 1983; Stone and Taylor 1983). Nevertheless, tap root growth in a 20-10 C gradient was slightly increased compared with roots grown at 15 C (uniform regime).…”

Modeling root growth and the soil–plant–atmosphere continuum of cotton crops

“…Several mathematical models of root growth have been developed over the last 30 years. The simplest models (Gerwitz and Page, 1974;Stone and Taylor, 1983) simulated only rooting depth. A more complex generation of models simulated a root system exploring the soil in two separated processes: downward penetration of the vertical axis and horizontal proliferation of roots into individual layers (Ritchie et al, 1985;Andrew, 1987;Jones et al, 1991;Robertson et al, 1993).…”