Morphological and agronomic characterization of pigmented corn races

Resumen

bjetive: to morphologically characterize accessions of pigmented maize belonging to 25 races for use in genetic improvement programs.

Design/ Methodology/ Approach: the means of morphological, agronomic and biochemical variables of 275 accessions from 25 maize races were determined. Then, analyses of variance, comparisons of means, and cluster analyses were performed.

Results: there was non-significant variation in plant height, height to the first ear, and number of leaves. The variability was significant in stem diameter, weight of one-thousand grains, grain width, and anthocyanin content. In terms of hardness, 18 of the 25 races fitted the recommended value of flotation index. Four large groups were defined at a Euclidean distance of 5.

Limitations/ Implications of the study: this research was limited exclusively to the study of pigmented accessions, excluding those that lacked this characteristic. This delimitation is justified by the particular objectives of the study. Nevertheless, it is pertinent to consider that the incorporation of non-pigmented accessions in future breeding research could allow the combination of desirable attributes from both (pigmented and non-pigmented) groups. However, genetic variability beyond pigmentation trait is anticipated to be restricted among these groups.

Findings/ Conclusions: it was possible to identify the races that comply, in terms of hardness and grain width, with the Mexican standard NMXFF-034/1-SCFI-2020. In addition, the median anthocyanin content was identified, as well as the maximum and minimum value. It was possible to group the races into four groups based on their similarity. The diversity found can be used in genetic improvement programs, as well as in production programs.