Improvement of Machine Harvesting Accuracy and Management Evaluation by Pinching Cultivation for Aomori Local Green Soybean “Kemame”

Abstract

In this experiment, we investigated the effects of pinching on the growth and yield of a local green soybean, “kemame,” and evaluated the effect of introducing a pinching machine and a harvest machine on farm management. We observed that the pinching mistake rate was less than 4% when the pinching machine was operated at a speed of about 0.5 m/s and pinching was done at a position 10 cm below the top of the main stem. The yield remained unaffected when pinching was done at the 9th leaf stage and flowering stage. The harvest loss in the case of pinched plant was significantly lower than in the case of untreated plant when the harvest machine was used. Thus, the introduction of pinching and harvest machines in the cultivation of “kemame” has the potential to decrease the harvest loss about 10% and reduce the working time 20% or less, resulting in increased profits.