Impact on morpho-physiological and yield traits in maize in environments differing in water availability

Abstract

A group of hundred maize lines were evaluated for irrigation impact. Individual effects of irrigation regimes over years revealed highly significant mean sum of squares due to lines for all traits indicating importance of water for these traits at critical stages of plant development. High GCV values for all the traits were recorded under stress conditions for most of the traits except canopy temperature and canopy temperature that revealed increment in GCV with increment in water. Highest GCV was recorded for ears plant-1, followed by ASI and grain yield plot-1. Desirable influence of water on all maturity, morphological, yield, quality, physiological traits was noticed. On an average irrigation regimes resulted in early maturity and low ASI. For yield and related traits water application recorded highest average increase in grain yield plot-1 (47.80%) followed by kernel row-1 (32.47%), ear plant-1 (18.09%), 100 grain weight (14.30%). Elite lines identified exhibited earliness in maturity and superiority in morpho-physiological, yield, quality traits indicating the inbuilt potential of lines. These elite lines exhibited maximum % decrease over population mean for maturity, canopy temperature and stomatal count with maximum percent increase for morpho-physiological and yield traits in stress regime as compared to well watered regime.