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Flowering and maturation of grain maize under British conditions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

R. E. Gunn
Affiliation:
Plant Breeding Institute, Cambridge

Summary

The relationships between mid-silking date, mid-maturity date, spread of silking and spread of maturity were studied in four maize hybrids. Mid-maturity date and spread of maturity were positively related to mid-silking date. The spread of silking ranged from 13 to 18 days and the spread of maturity from 34 to 47 days in different hybrids. Grain moisture content at mid-maturity ranged from 40 to 35%. It was concluded that the common practice of harvesting grain crops at 40% dry matter is likely to result in appreciable loss of yield: variation in the proportion of mature kernels when the grain has reached 40% moisture may account for the large season to season variation in yield observed in commercial crops. The potential benefits of early flowering hybrids are briefly discussed.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1974

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References

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