Abstract
Soybeans are a major global commodity. A major challenge in soybean production is premature bean cracking, which leads to seed shedding and crop loss. Consistent breeding efforts are being made to minimize seed shedding in soybeans worldwide. Soybean breeding for increased abdominal suture strength has not resulted in varieties that are guaranteed to be resistant to premature cracking. Therefore, for further study of the issue, the study of the structural features of the soybean hilum is of practical interest. The trait of fusion of the seed hilum with the pod safe seeds from shedding. The paper presents studies of a soybean collection based on cracking features and resistance to seeds shedding. The largest number of cracking forms were found in the varieties of the first four maturity groups (000, 00, 0 and I). A positive correlation was observed between the cracking and non-shedding seeds traits (r = 0.48). The trait of fusion of the seed hilum with the pod valves turned out to be dominant. Our findings suggest that this trait may be influenced by a single gene or exhibit intermediate inheritance, but further genetic analysis is needed. The average yields of the control nursery numbers with a fused seed stalk (4.36 t/ha) are lower than the average yields of numbers without this trait (4.75 t/ha).