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- Author or Editor: Robert P. Mulrooney x
'Maffei 15' baby lima bean seeds were sown every 6 cm in rows 76 cm apart to yield a nominal stand of 215,000 plants/ha at two locations in Delaware over 2 years. Seedlings were thinned within 2 weeks of planting to provide 0%, 16.7%, 33.3%, and 50.0% stand reduction at two in-row spacing patterns to determine subsequent effects on vegetative and reproductive growth. Shoot fresh weight per square meter was decreased only in 2003 by 21% and bean fresh weight per square meter was decreased only in 2004 by 13.8% when plant stand decreased to 50%. This disproportional vegetative and reproductive growth response to stand reduction resulted from a compensatory linear increase in shoot fresh weight, usable pod number, and bean fresh weight of individual plants. Thus, 'Maffei 15' lima bean tolerates a considerable loss of plant stand with little or no effect on yield.
A mechanical planter was developed to sow seed of baby lima beans (Phaseolus lunatus) in small plots. The mechanical seeder allowed small plots to be quickly and consistently seeded at a fixed spacing. Seeds were manually spread along a 10-ft (3.0 m) base plate containing 50 holes of slightly larger diameter than the seed length and at the desired seed spacing [2.4 inches (6 cm)]. Once all the holes were filled, a slider plate below the base plate containing holes of the same diameter and spacing, but which were slightly offset, was slid horizontally so that the holes of the base and slider plates aligned and the seeds dropped to the bottom of the furrow. Compared to manual planting, the mechanical planter increased the precision of seed placement and reduced the time needed to plant 50 seeds. The planter was easy to use and transport, and was inexpensive.