Susanne Zilberfarb

Delaware Soybean Board Funds Research

Three soybean research projects have won support from the Delaware Soybean Board for 2008.

Mark Van Gessel of the University of Delaware will explore “the utility and efficiency of fall herbicide applications for no-till soybean production” in a two-year project that will receive $14,000 from the checkoff board. Van Gessel will focus on evaluating various residual herbicides for no-till weed control up until planting, and determine the effectiveness of various application timings for the control of horseweed. Controlling winter annual weeds, including glyphosate-resistant horseweed, has become increasingly difficult in no-till production. Fall applications of residual herbicides have shown promise in the Midwest and in preliminary University of Delaware research.

Two research grants were awarded to the Schillinger Seed Company. In the first grant, $4,000 is being provided to support disease and yield testing of soybean varieties suited for Mid-Atlantic production which have resistance to Asian Soybean Rust. Resistance has been identified in lines tested during 2006 and 2007, and the company needs to reaffirm the resistance and evaluate some 2,000 new second breeding generation lines which are highly adapted to Delmarva. Yield testing will occur on more than 300 rust-resistant lines during 2008 at two locations on Delmarva and four locations in Mississippi and Arkansas, where rust has been diagnosed.

In the second grant, Schillinger Seed will receive $7,000 to support growth studies of young chicks and piglets to substantiate the feed efficiency of high-protein soybean varieties adapted to the Mid-Atlantic region. Animal agriculture consumes 98 percent of domestic soybean meal, making it the most important market for soybean farmers. The feed trials will use high-protein and high-digestible soybean meals derived from Schillinger varieties, test two new high-protein varieties adapted to Delmarva in digestibility studies, and determine the actual feed value of the meals to poultry integrators.

The Delaware Soybean Board is a nine-member organization representing soybean producers from all counties in the state. The Board manages the Delaware funds from the national soybean checkoff program, each year funding research, education, marketing, and promotion projects. A request for research proposals is extended annually. More information about the solicitation may be found at www.desoybeans.org.