ABSTRACT: The objective of this research was to evaluate the effect of seeder furrow opening mechanisms on soil physical characteristics, plant growth, and soybean yield in lowland areas with the presence of compacted layer near the surface. An experiment was conducted in the lowland experimental area of the Federal University of Santa Maria-RS, Brazil, during the 2015/16 and 2016/17 growing season. The experimental design was a randomized block with five replications and four treatments:

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... r using shank (S) at 0.23 m depth; S at 0.13 m; Planter using double disk at 0.07 m depth and Raised-bed + S at 0.12 m depth. The use of S at 0.23 m depth allowed reduction of penetration resistance and increase of soil macroporosity in the layers 0-0.1 and 0.1-0.2 m depth in the seeding row. Sowing with S at 0.23 m depth and Raised-bed + S at 0.12 m depth allowed a better development of soybean plants in compacted irrigated rice area (higher nodulation, leaf area index and root growth), as well as higher grain yield.