Soybean

Mississippi farmers plant approximately 2.0 million acres of soybeans each year. This acreage fluctuates some, but that depends mainly on commodity markets and the impact of weather on other acreages. Our all time high acreage was 4.0 million acres in 1979.

Vast changes have taken place in recent years in soybean production in Mississippi. First, we’ve begun planting the bulk of our acreage in maturity Groups IV and V whereas in the early 1980’s the bulk of our acreage was planted in maturity Groups VI and VII. Secondly, we are planting this crop earlier. In recent years, much of the state crop has been planted prior to mid June whereas in the past over a third was usually not planted until after mid June.

Mississippi is not a major state production wise, but soybeans are an important commodity on most farms. State average yields during the 1970’s and 1980’s averaged 21-22 bushels per acre. During the decade of the, 1990’s state average yields have increased to 26.6 bushels per acre.

Based on current practices we have determined that the two most important inputs in soybean production are variety selection and planting dates. Numerous factors effect production, but no other inputs can offer the potential return of the proper variety or timely planting.