 |
Online ISSN : 2349-8080 Issues : 12 per year Publisher : Excellent Publishers Email : editorinchiefijcrbp@gmail.com |
2International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), 08 BP 0932 Tri Postal, Cotonou, Republic of Benin, West Africa
Maize (Zea mays L.) constitutes the basis of food security in the poorest zones of Africa. One of the limiting factors of its production is soil phosphorus deficiency. In this study, 134 maize genotypes collected in different localities of Benin were assessed with three phosphorus doses (0, 50 and 100 kg/ha) along with known tolerant (Mo17) and susceptible (B73) checks using 17 agromorphological traits. The selected traits showed heritability between 0.33 and 0.81 hence indicating that observed phenotypic differences are strongly linked to gene expression and therefore a selection can be made on the basis of those traits. Furthermore, the phosphorus application led to significant increase of traits apart from the width of the leaf. Genotype × treatment interaction was significant only for yield and its components. With 0 and 100 kg/ha of phosphorus, no resistant (grouped with Mo17) accessions were obtained while with 50 kg/ha 15 were identified and selected. The dose of 100 kg/ha showed that the accessions’ tolerance is not at the same level with the one of the check Mo17. Finally, when comparing treatment 0 kg/ha to the one of 100 kg/ha, all the accessions are closer to B73 than Mo17 for the traits used. The study revealed that for the tolerant genotypes identified, dose of 50 kg/ha is sufficient for a maximum grain yield.
