Enhancing soybean growth and yield: Investigating the effects of different molybdenum levels combined with organic and inorganic fertilizers

Abstract

The study at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University (Nov 2022 to Mar 2023) evaluated the impact of varying molybdenum levels, organic, and inorganic fertilizers on soybean growth and yield using a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. Results showed significant nutrient management effects on all parameters except the harvest index for BARI soybean 6. The best results were achieved with a treatment combining 75% recommended chemical fertilizer (RCF), 2 kg/ha of molybdenum, and 3 t/ha of cow dung T8 Treatment At 60 DAS, T8 yielded the highest plant height (51.82 cm), branches (5.82), pods (42.65), seed yield (2.40 t/ha), Stover yield (2.80 t/ha), and biological yield (5.20 t/ha), with a harvest index of 46.15%. The lowest values resulted in T1 (no fertilizer) treatment. This suggests that integrating molybdenum with organic and inorganic fertilizers can boost soybean growth and yield while reducing inorganic fertilizer use by up to 25%.