The Influence of Seed Production Environment on Seed Development and Quality of Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill)

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Research and their results are important both for science and agricultural practice. 

Add to keywords: habitat 

Line 33. family Leguminosae.

According to other sources, it is the family Fabaceae Lindl., Papilionaceae Giseke 

Materials and Methods.

What was the forecrop. Were seeds inoculated with symbiotic bacteria? I am asking because of the applied high nitrogen fertilization 

In field experiments, it is good to repeat the experiment in the next year. This allows you to demonstrate repeatability in years. 

Poor description of soil conditions 

References

Fehr, W. R.; Caviness, C. E. Stage of Development Descriptions for Soybeans, Glycine max (L.) Merrill 1. Crop Sci. 1977, 11, 929–680 931.

https://doi.org/10.2135/cropsci1971.0011183X001100060051x   Check the literature and adjust it to the journal's requirements.    After the correction, I recommend publishing the manuscript in the journal Agronomy 

 

 

Author Response

Thank you very much for your kind suggestions to improve our manuscript.

Reviewer 2 Report

Weerasekara and coauthors have studied the soybean seed production in three locations and two planting cycles. From this work they provide conclusions and suggest expanding the crop soybean by managing the time and location.  

Since soybeans produce more protein than other crops and is the primary source of high value meal, my biggest critique of this manuscript is that protein quantification is not determined. Moreover, after protein which is accumulate aprox. 35-40%, lipids (i.e. oil), predominantly in the form of triacylglycerol (TAG), represent 18-20% of seed dry weight. Neither of these analysis are included in this work.  However, analysis of raffinose/sucrose and glucose is carried out although carbohydrates are of less marketable value. It would be important to determine the protein and/or lipid content in late stage from seeds harvested at the three locations and two planting cycles to support the conclusion. Representation for only one late stage as figure 5B should be enough.

Line 458. Authors describe seed sowing and early reproductive stage with minimal influence but on the next lines they describe early reproductive with influence in the final yield. Moreover, on line 463, authors describe that late reproductive stage as the only which result in a higher final yield. I think the final yield is influenced only by the late reproductive and not by the early reproductive stage. These sentences must be clarified.

Authors evaluate the lower content of sucrose and RFO in P2-POL with the highest heat stress conditions, but through the late reproductive stage which determine the seed quality, GDD is higher for P1-ALU without an effect on sucrose and RFO levels. However, in this stage (late reproductive), RF is much higher for P2-POL. The authors must indicate not only the GDD, but also the RF values for this reduction in the sucrose and RFO levels.  

It is sometimes not clear the data representation;

• Data on figure 3A and B are the summatory from all the locations and the two cycles or just for a specific set of data? same question for figure 5A.
• Data represent in Figure 3C, 3D and 5B are for R8+10 or any other stage?

It is interesting that P1-MI maintain the seed quality through the delay maturity stage. Do the authors have any hypothesis?

 

Minor comments,

Panel from figures sometimes are capital letters (A, B,..) an other as (a), (b). Authors need to be consistent and use always the same. Moreover, it is not correct to describe only abbreviations in the axes (for example for SVI on figure 2 or CVG figure 3), and sometimes show only units (Nº of days). Describe abbreviations in the axes and include the units. 

Legend figure 2. FG% is included in the text but not in the graph. Authors must be careful with these details, check all the figures.

Author Response

Thank you very much for your kind suggestions to improve our manuscript.

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf