engleski

Choosing earlier maize hybrids for biofortification traits under combined abiotic stress conditions

There is a trend in large-scale maize production in Croatia that the earlier maturing hybrids are even more frequently chosen than the later ones. Earlier hybrids have lower grain moisture and they are not necessarily lower-yielding. It is not clear, though, what are possible changes in grain micronutrient concentrations following this choice particularly when abiotic stresses occur. Objectives of this study were to determine the effects of acid soil and drought on grain yield, moisture, Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu concentrations, and to examine the specific relations between the traits in the presence of particular abiotic stress in ten maize hybrids differing in maturity. Mean values for all six grain traits across environments and hybrids differed significantly (5.5-11.3 t ha-1, 17- 28%, 17-24, 13-19, 4-5, 1.6-2.0 mg kg-1 for grain yield, moisture, Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu, respectively). This was associated with specific abiotic stress, either drought or soil acidity or combined. The choice of genotypes of earlier maturity might be more important for Fe, whereas managing of abiotic stress environments appears to be of interest for Zn, Mn and Cu. There were inconsistent correlations between grain yield and micronutrient status across the field environments with the exception of Mn. We might recommend investigating simultaneous genotype × environment × management (G×E×M) interactions in order to integrate agronomic and breeding efforts for a successful biofortification program.

maize hybrids ; yield ; biofortification traits ; abiotic stress

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