Book of Extended summaries ISDA

International Conference on Reimagining Rainfed Agro-ecosystems: Challenges &
Opportunities during 22-24, December 2022 at ICAR-CRIDA, Hyderabad
Managing genetic resources for enhanced stress tolerance
T3-38P-1241
Study on Inter-Relation of Yield and The Associated Traits in Maize
Hybrids Under Rainfed Conditions
K.R.V. Sathya Sheela 1* , S. Lakshmi Narayanan 2 , R. Radhajeyalakshmi 1 , T. Selvakumar 1
and N. Satheesh Kumar 1
1 Maize Research Station, TNAU, Vagarai 624 613, Tamil Nadu, India
2 AC&RI, Madurai, TNAU, Coimbatore 641003, Tamil Nadu, India
*sathyakrv@yahoo.co.in
Maize (Zea mays L.), known as ‘queen of cereals’ is the third important food crop after rice
and wheat. In addition to staple food for human being and quality feed for animals, maize
serves as a basic raw material as an ingredient to thousands of industrial products that includes
starch, oil, protein, alcoholic beverages, food sweeteners, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, film,
textile, gum, package and paper industries etc. It is grown under wider agro-climatic
conditions. Selection of promising genotypes and planning management practices to improve
yield is a challenging issue under rainfed conditions. Spatio-temporal variations in rainfall and
temperature affects maize production (Premalatha and Kalamani, 2010). Water limitation has
adverse effect on yield and the development of hybrids with reasonable level of drought
tolerance is essential for sustainable maize production under water limited conditions.
Reduction in grain yield and yield components of maize hybrids under stress conditions is often
correlated with changes of some phenotypic expressions. This study aimed to assess the
responses of grain yield and important phenotypic characteristics of maize hybrids under water
limited conditions.
Methodology
The experimental study was conducted at Maize Research Station, Vagarai during October -
January 2021. In this study, 19 hybrids from newly developed crosses along with two checks
were evaluated in two replications in Randomized Block Design under rainfed conditions. The
biometrical traits viz., plant height, ear height, days to to 50% tasseling, days to 50% silking,
anthesis silking interval, cob length, no of rows per cob, hundred seed weight, shelling
percentage and grain yield were recorded. Correlation among the traits was studied using
TNAU Stat statistical package.
Results
Grain yield, as a complex variable, can reflect the interaction of the environment and
management with the growth and development processes that occur throughout the crop’s
maturation cycle (Adnan et al., 2020 and Premalatha et al., 2010) and in addition, yield
component traits adjust their expressions to determine grain yield under different
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