Water Stress Influence on The Vegetative Period Yield Components of Different Maize Genotypes

Cassyo De Araujo Rufino,Pablo Martín-Ramos,Jucilayne Fernandes-Vieira,Marciabela Fernandes-Correa,Jesús Martín-Gil,José Abreu Júnior,Lizandro Tavares

doi:10.3390/agronomy8080151

Cassyo De Araujo Rufino, Pablo Martín-Ramos + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy8080151

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Abstract

Maize is an important food staple in many countries, and is useful in animal feed and many industrial applications. Its productivity is highly sensitive to drought stress, which may occur at any period during its growth cycle. The objective of this work was to compare the water stress influence on the performance of different maize genotypes in critical vegetative stages. Four genotypes of maize (namely a single-cross hybrid (AG 9045), a double-cross hybrid (AG 9011), a triple-cross hybrid (AG 5011), and a variety (AL Bandeirante)) were subjected to a 10-day period without irrigation in the vegetative stages that determine the number of kernel rows and the plant’s ability to take up nutrients and water (V4, V6 and V8). The impact of low water availability was assessed by analyzing plant height, height of the first ear insertion, stem diameter, yield per plant, and number of rows per ear, evincing that the yield per plant was the most sensitive parameter in all the stages. With regard to the influence of the genotype, the single-cross hybrid was demonstrated to be the most resilient to water shortage.

Highlights

Corn is one of the most important cereals as a source of energy for humans and animals, standing out as the fifth most produced commodity in the World according to The Food and AgricultureOrganization Corporate Statistical Database (FAOSTAT) [1]
The work presented was conducted at the Laboratório Didático de Análise de Sementes (LDAS) and in the greenhouse facilities of the Faculty of Agronomy Elisha Maciel (FAEM) at the Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Capão do Leão, RS, Brazil (31◦ 480 13.0” S, 52◦ 240 51.5” W), in the
REVIEWinteraction was found between the PH, FEI, and Y variables and5 the of 9 water-deficit stress (Figure 1)

Summary

Introduction

Corn is one of the most important cereals as a source of energy for humans and animals, standing out as the fifth most produced commodity in the World according to The Food and AgricultureOrganization Corporate Statistical Database (FAOSTAT) [1]. According to the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) [3], the 2018/2019 area dedicated to corn production in the world has been forecasted at 184 million hectares, with an average yield of 5.72 tons per hectare. The yield of a corn crop is the result of a combination of the genetic potential of the cultivar, the management of the crop and the environmental conditions of the cultivation area. As regards the latter, water availability and drought episodes have become one of the main factors affecting C4 crop yields, representing a serious threat to agricultural production worldwide.

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