Agromorphological Characterization and Variability Among Maize Hybrids in the Mid-Hills of Far-West Nepal.

Abstract

The experiment was conducted using an alpha lattice design with two replications for each genotype, comprising 20 maize hybrids obtained from CIMMYT and NMRP, including two check varieties. The treatment genotypes were assessed during the spring season of 2024 at the agronomy farm of Gokuleshwor College, Baitadi. The tallest plant height of 293.298 cm was recorded in genotype RH-12, while the shortest, 231.598 cm, was observed in RML-95/RML-140. The observed variation among genotypes indicated that selection can be effectively carried out based on traits such as days to 50% anthesis, days to 50% silking, anthesis-silking interval, number of rows per cob, number of grains per row, cob length, cob diameter, and grain yield. Most of the evaluated morphological traits showed a strong correlation with grain yield, depicting that indirect selection could effectively enhance yield potential. Among the hybrids, CAH 1817 stood out with the highest grain yield, followed closely by NH2226 and VH 18567. These varieties show great potential and could be strong candidates for promoting higher-yielding maize hybrids in Nepal.