Sugars and cyclitols leached from soybeans (Glycine max var Sparks) during imbibition were assayed as a function of time. Pinitol leached many times faster than carbohydrates. During the initial 20 minutes of imibition, the pinitol/carbohydrate ratio was 3.4, declining to 0.29 for fully imbibed seeds. The value for dry soybeans was 0.14. Hypochlorite treatment of seeds more than doubled the rate at which carbohydrates leached out, but had little effect on pinitol. A role in development of soil microorganisms is postulated for pinitol.