Feyisola RT., Godonu KG, Olakojo SA, Sanni KO, Abdul NO, Sanusi AS.

• access_time3 August, 2024

  subjectCategory: Agricultural Sciences

• Maize is an important crop in many parts of the tropical environment providing energy source for poultry and staple food supply for human as well as for industrial uses because of its diverse utilization potential. Nigeria is characterized with diverse accessions such as land, cultivars, and farmers' selected lines from many years of cropping maize for improved yield and adaptation through informal breeding programmes. The objectives of this study therefore were to evaluate white and yellow maize accessions for yield performance, disease reactions and agronomic attributes, and to further characterize them for use in planned maize breeding programmes. One hundred and sixty-five maize accessions (85 white) and (80 yellow) were used for performance evaluation and reactions to prevailing diseases of hot tropical environment, under natural field infection. The results from analysis of variance of the white and yellow maize accessions showed significant differences for plant height (3144.75 cm and 1901.54 cm), ear height (1462.98 cm and 982.76 cm), ear harvest (12.64 and 8.74), husk cover (0.83 and 0.67) and grain yield (4743.49 kg/ha and 3851.67 kg/ha) and disease syndrome ratings. This study revealed the variability in agronomic traits which will in no doubt expand the gene pool of the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training of Obafemi Awolowo University for breeders developing early, medium and late maturing white and yellow maize populations for improved agronomic potential, yield, disease resistance and adaptation to hot humid ecologies of the tropical ecosystems.
• picture_as_pdfView the Journal