The losses that occur during mechanized harvesting of cereals imply large prejudice for farmers and for the Country. For soybeans, much of the losses could be avoided. Thus, in this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate physiological and physical losses of soybean seeds during harvest at different days and times. The losses were grouped in losses on the platform of cutting, losses in the internal mechanisms and total losses. The quantitative losses were evaluated at two times of day, between 09:00 and 10:00 and between 14:00 and 15:00 on 18 and 29 March and 20 April and, in a parallel experiment, in three hours, between 09:00 and 10:00, between 14:00 and 15:00 and between 20:00 and 21:00 on 20 April. The qualitative losses were evaluated in seeds harvested between 14:00 and 15:00 on 18 and 29 March and 20 April by tetrazolium test and electrical conductivity. There was a significant increase in total losses of 121% between the first and last day of harvest. The variation of total losses during the day was significant, reaching 387.3 kg ha-1 at 21:00 h. The physiological quality decreased over the period. The time between 14:00 and 15:00 h showed greater loss in the platform of cutting, but the total losses were lower. The correlation analysis shows that total losses are strongly influenced by moisture straw.
Glycine max; seed quality; vigor; viability
