Evaluation of Maize Varieties for Grain Yield under Water-restricted Conditions

The study sought to evaluate maize germplasm accessions from the Ifes Germplasm Bank (Ifes BAG) to identify promising lines for breeding programs to increase yield under water-restricted conditions. A competition trial was carried in two contrasting environments in the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil: municipality of Alegre and municipality of Colatina. Twenty-one maize accessions were collected and evaluated for agronomic performance in two locations (The municipalities of Alegre and Colatina) in Espírito Santo State, Brazil. Trials were conducted under water-restricted conditions from vegetative to reproductive stage in a randomized block design with five replicates. Data were subjected to analysis of variance by the F Test and to multivariate clustering analysis according to the estimate of genetic distance proposed by Mahalanobis. Genotype by environment interaction identified promising genotypes for each specific environment. Maize germplasm accessions from the Ifes BAG showed genetic variability. Among the germplasm accessions from the Ifes BAG, the populations Padrinho, Piranão 14, Aliança and Palha Roxa are promising for breeding programs with the goal of increasing grain yield under water-restricted conditions in tropical climate regions.