Introduction: Documentation of agricultural production processes involves compiling all information and activities that illustrate the production cycle of a crop, from seedbed preparation to harvesting.
Materials and methods: To document the soybean production process across Golestan Province, 140 farms were selected using a systematic-random sampling method. The number of samples was determined based on the significance and cultivated area in each county, after which the specified number of farms in each county was randomly selected. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with farmers and field observations of various agronomic operations. Information recorded from these farms included the duration of agronomic operations, fuel consumption per hectare for each operation, types and power of machinery used, frequency of each operation, seed variety and quantity, types of chemical and organic fertilizers, types of herbicides and pesticides used for weed, pest, and disease control, irrigation methods, fuel type for irrigation (diesel or electricity), and finally, soybean grain yield. Additionally, data regarding the cultivated area and the type of crop planted prior to wheat and soybean in each farm were recorded. For data analysis, absolute and cumulative frequency distributions were employed.
Results: In Golestan Province, wheat was the predominant preceding crop to soybean. Soybean planting took place between May 10th and June 26th. Regarding seedbed preparation, 48% of farmers utilized primary tillage involving moldboard plows, cultivators, and combination cultivators. Conversely, 52% of soybean producers directly employed disc harrowing for seedbed preparation without using primary tillage implements. Farmers primarily applied urea fertilizer as top-dressing and during irrigation. Specifically, 50.78% of soybean producers used urea as the first top-dressing, with an average application rate of 60 kg/ha. Due to ease of access, tractor-mounted sprayers were more widely used than turbine sprayers. Soybean irrigation was conducted within a period of 10 to 20 days, depending on the region and water availability. Soybean harvesting across the province occurred from late October to early December, contingent upon the planting date. Overall, soybean grain yields in the province ranged from 1,200 to 4,500 kg/ha.
Conclusion: In general, the results of this study can serve as a guide for researchers and students to improve production processes and identify weaknesses. This can facilitate efforts toward increasing crop yield, reducing energy consumption, mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, and minimizing environmental pollution. |
