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- Title
Mixing trait-based corn (Zea mays L.) cultivars increases yield through pollination synchronization and increased cross-fertilization.
- Authors
Hongping Li; Kui Liu; Zhibin Li; Moubiao Zhang; Yongen Zhang; Shuyan Li; Xiuling Wang; Jinlong Zhou; Yali Zhao; Tianxue Liu; Chaohai Li
- Abstract
Abiotic stress such as high temperature at flowering is one of many conditions reducing yield of corn (Zea mays L.). Mixing corn cultivars with diverse functional traits increases within-crop diversity and provides a potential means of mitigating yield losses under stress conditions. We conducted a three-year field study to investigate the effects of cultivar mixtures on kernel setting rate, pollen sources, and yield. This study consisted of six treatments, including two high temperature-tolerant (HTT) monocrops of WK702 and DH701, two high temperature-sensitive (HTS) monocrops of DH605 and DH662, and two HTT-HTS mixtures of WK702-DH605 and DH701-DH662. The anthesis-silking interval (ASI) was 0.9-1.6 days shorter in mixtures than in monocrops. Kernel setting rate was increased in mixtures (86.4%-88.7%) compared with those in monocrops (74.7%-84.1%) as a result of synchrony and complementarity of pollination. Grain yields of the HTT-HTS mixtures increased by 13.3%-18.7%, equivalent to 1169 to 1605 kg ha-1, in comparison with HTS corn monocrops. The results of SSR markers showed that crossfertilization percentage in corn cultivar mixtures ranged from 29.3% to 47.8%, partially explaining yield improvement. Land equivalent ratio (LER) was 1.12 for corn mixtures and the partial land equivalent ratio (e.g., > 0.5) showed the complementary benefits in corn mixtures. The results indicated that mixing corn cultivars with diverse flowering and drought-tolerance traits increased yields via pollination synchrony.
- Subjects
CROSS-fertilization (Biology); ABIOTIC stress; CORN yields; POLLINATION; DROUGHT tolerance of corn
- Publication
Crop Journal (2095-5421), 2023, Vol 11, Issue 1, p291
- ISSN
2095-5421
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1016/j.cj.2022.05.007