| Titre |
Agro-morphological Variability of Maize Cultivars in South Benin |
| Auteurs |
Quenum Florent J. B. [1],
Ahoton Léonard E [2],
EZIN VINCENT [3],
Djanta Arnaud [4],
|
| Journal: |
Journal of Experimental Agriculture International |
| Catégorie Journal: |
Internationale |
| Impact factor: |
0 |
| Volume Journal: |
15 |
| DOI: |
DOI: 10.9734/JEAI/2017/30512 |
| Resume |
In Benin, maize ranks the first among cereal production. Local maize varieties are mainly produced
in the southern parts of Benin. The objective of this work was to investigate the agro-morphological
diversity of 58 maize cultivars collected from 14 communes in South-Benin. The experimental
design used was a block of Fisher (RCB) with 4 replications. Twenty one (21) quantitative and four
(04) qualitative descriptors for maize traits were used in this study. From the results obtained, the
cultivars were grouped into 3 classes by hierarchical classification both for quantitative traits and
qualitative traits, thus indicating that the two categories of traits showed the same level of
variability with very highly significant (p < 0.001) or highly significant (p < 0.01)differences. The
cultivar collection consisted of 13 early cultivars (Group 1), 18 cultivars of intermediate cycle
(Group 2) and 27 late cultivars (Group 3). In addition, the phenotypic variability of cultivars was
more related to their agronomic and physiological behaviors than their geographic origin. The
evaluated traits permit to identify the cultivars that can be used in the breeding programs so as to
make selected cultivars available to producers. Diversity observed among the cultivars could be
useful for further study of maize in Benin and conservation of genetic resources. |
| Mots clés |
Agro-morphological diversity; cultivars; Zea mays; classification; South Benin |
| Pages |
1 - 19 |
| Fichier |
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