Estimations on Trait Stability of Maize Genotypes

Abstract

The purposes of this study were to define the kind of trait inheritance through stability estimations of various traits in maize, to define the relationship between different environments and maize hybrids, and to propose the best environments and hybrids for farmers. Field experiments were conducted in two years (2011 and 2012) at four different locations in Greece: Florina, Trikala, Kalambaka and Giannitsa which were selected as they represent different environments. The genetic materials tested in a Randomized Complete Block (RCB) design, were 15 F1 commercial maize hybrids and 15 open-pollination lines developed from 4-cycle Honeycomb evaluation. Materials were sown and harvested by hand at different dates according to local conditions. Trait stability index (x̄ / s)2 across environments was computed for each maize trait studied: yield, specific weight, 1000-kernel weight, axis (spindle) weight, spike weight, number of kernels per spike, spike length and diameter, number of kernel rows, spindle diameter, main spike and plant height, prolificacy and number of kernels per row. The findings showed great differences in stability index between traits and also for the same trait across environments or between maize genotypes. GGE biplot for yield distributed genotypes in a different way for Florina on the basis of one main factor and managed to depict Trikala’s differential response on the basis of two factors. Almost the same trend was found for 1000-kernel weight and specific weight, where there was a wide core for similar responding genotypes. Basic conclusions of this research are summarized in great differences of various traits, indicating qualitative, medium or quantitative inheritance. Estimations for trait stability can be easily performed in a multi-genotype experiment using trait stability index. The most stable hybrids were proved to be 31Y43, COSTANZA and FACTOR. The environment favouring a general stable performance proved to be Florina.

Modeling Stability of Alfalfa Yield and Main Quality Traits

“…Using molecular markers and clustering, Alzahrani et al [4] managed to separate cultivars According to the ANOVA table, G × E interactions were highly significant in our research. Greveniotis et al [24][25][26][27]46,47] reported that G × E interactions often occur in the cultivations of many plants aiming to support livestock, meaning different behavior in different places or years. The main traits of alfalfa breeders and farmers, taking into account green mass yield, dry matter yield, and protein content (%), are subjective to GEI [5].…”

“…The stability index was calculated using, as follows, [24][25][26][27]38,[43][44][45][46][47]] (x/s) 2 , where x represents the mean value of each parameter examined for every genetic material utilized in this study and s the respective standard deviation. ANOVA was used to assess the data across environments to reveal significant differences for each measured parameter.…”

“…As it is known, yield is strongly affected by factors such as genotype (G), environment (E), and genotype x environment interaction (GEI) [24][25][26][27], but, among them, GEI leads genotypes to respond differently in different environments [28]. The literature reports that the cultivation year significantly influences green mass and dry matter yield, as well as the protein content (%) in some species [29].…”

Stability, the Last Frontier: Forage Yield Dynamics of Peas under Two Cultivation Systems

“…The predictive accuracy of such research trials is described in previous work based on AMMI analyses [ 22 ]. It is essential to depict that all analysis methods must be properly selected for each kind of data, including raw data and stability indices [ 23 ].…”

“…In the present study, the main scope was to determine the forage yield stability of pea genotypes along with various correlated traits based on the innovative approach of estimating the stability index, with the specific aim of studying pea genotypes’ behavior under both conventional and low-input cultivation systems. Greveniotis et al [ 23 , 39 ] used a stability index, based on Fasoulas [ 7 ] and Fasoula [ 8 ] remarks, as an estimation of the heritability of various traits, leading to clear discrimination between qualitative and quantitative traits. Our approach includes stability performance analysis and reveals the stability performance and the kind of heritability of traits.…”