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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Agron.

Sec. Agroecological Cropping Systems

Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fagro.2025.1570567

Cropping Potential of Forage Soybean as a Summer Forage in Midwest

Provisionally accepted
Rudra Baral Rudra Baral 1*Jiyung Kim Jiyung Kim 2Bishwoyog Bhattarai Bishwoyog Bhattarai 1Hari Koirala Hari Koirala 1Ignacio Massigoge Ignacio Massigoge 2Ethan Denson Ethan Denson 3Cesar Guareschi Cesar Guareschi 2Sofia Cominelli Sofia Cominelli 2Joaquín Peraza Rud Joaquín Peraza Rud 2Jessica Bezerra De Oliveira Jessica Bezerra De Oliveira 2Paula Garcia Helguera Paula Garcia Helguera 2Ignacio Antonio Ciampitti Ignacio Antonio Ciampitti 2Charles W Rice Charles W Rice 2Doohong Min Doohong Min 2*
  • 1 University of Missouri, Columbia, United States
  • 2 Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, United States
  • 3 Department of Agricultural Science & Engineering, Tennessee State University, Nashville, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Rising feed and fertilizer costs, climatic uncertainties, and the summer slump in forage production are key challenges for livestock farmers in the Midwest region of the United States. Therefore, this study evaluated the dry matter yield (DMY), forage nutritive value (FNV), water use efficiency (WUE), and economic viability of forage soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr) for the Midwest rainfed cropping system. The research aimed to assess the suitability of forage soybean as an alternative summer forage crop that is drought-resilient, require lower inputs, and provide higher yield and forage quality compared to traditional forages. A three-year field experiment (2020-2022) using a randomized complete block design with four replications assessed two planting dates (mid-May, early July) and four growth stages (V2, V3, R1, R3). DMY was significantly influenced by planting dates and growth stages, with optimum planting (mid-May) yielding an average of 13.9 ± 0.5 Mg ha⁻¹ at the R3 stage, surpassing late planting (early July) by 51%. Significant variations in FNV parameters were observed between optimum and late planting dates and across different growth stages. Late planting improved forage nutritive value (FNV), with lower acid detergent fiber (ADF) (26% vs. 31%), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) (30% vs. 35%), and lignin (6% vs. 7%), alongside higher in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) (84% vs. 79%) and relative forage quality (RFQ) (237 vs. 197) when harvested at the R3 stage. Crude protein remained stable (19-21%) across growth stages. Overall forage quality (RFV and RFQ) remained stable across growth stages (from V2 to R3), ensuring consistent quality and flexible harvest timing. The forage soybean demonstrated a WUE of 20 kg ha⁻¹ mm⁻¹ and a net profit of $336 with 32% return on investment per hectare. These results position forage soybean as a drought-resilient, high-yielding, high-quality, and economically viable alternative to traditional forages, addressing seasonal shortages and enhancing sustainability in rainfed systems. Further research, particularly animal feeding trials and long-term soil health impacts, is recommended to validate its potential for widespread adoption.

    Keywords: Forage soybean, Rainfed cropping systems, Dry matter yield, Forage nutritive value, Water use efficiency, Net profit, return on investment

    Received: 03 Feb 2025; Accepted: 17 Mar 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Baral, Kim, Bhattarai, Koirala, Massigoge, Denson, Guareschi, Cominelli, Rud, Bezerra De Oliveira, Helguera, Ciampitti, Rice and Min. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Rudra Baral, University of Missouri, Columbia, United States
    Doohong Min, Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506-0110, Kansas, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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