Performance of white grain corn hybrids in five locations in High Valleys de México

Abstract

Given the insufficiency in corn production, which translates into the import of up to 15 million tons of grain, it is urgent to increase the productivity of this crop, using more and better varieties. The objective of this work was to determine the agronomic characteristics of white hybrids in five different environments, the best response, as well as to define the effect of genotype × environment interaction on yield, and other characteristics evaluated for the High Valleys of Mexico (2 200 at 2 600 meters above sea level). In the spring-summer 2016 agricultural cycle, ten maize hybrids were evaluated in five locations using an experimental design of randomized complete blocks, with four repetitions. The analysis was factorial considering as factors the environments (5), the hybrids (10), as well as the environment × hybrid interaction. Eight agronomic variables were evaluated. Anovas and comparisons of Tukey means p= 0.05 were performed. Both factors presented differential responses and the variables evaluated were influenced by the effect of the environment. The hybrids with the highest average productivity were ATZIRI PUMA (12 t ha^-1) and TSIRI PUMA (11.8 t ha^-1) followed by the hybrids H-50, H-66 and H-70, which produced 11.5, 11.6 and 11.6 t ha^-1 respectively. Considering that H-50 is one of the hybrids of greater commercial use in the High Valleys, the four referred hybrids of greater yield of white grain, could have perspectives of commercial use, in the environments managed in this study.