Caracterización morfoagronómica de poblaciones de maíz criollo (Zea mays L.) provincia de Manabí, Ecuador

Abstract

Ecuador is a country with a wide genetic diversity of corn and there are populations of native corn conserved by farmers that have not yet been characterized. These genetic resources could be conserved and used in plant breeding programs. The objective of this research was to characterize morphoagronomically 38 populations of native maize from the Province of Manabí, Ecuador. Plots of 8 m2 were established for each population, with a distance of 0.3 m between plants and 0.8 m between furrows and each furrow was 5 m long; at the Portoviejo Experimental Station of the National Institute of Agricultural Research (INIAP) during the dry season of 2022 (July - December); and 19 quantitative and 11 qualitative morphoagronomic descriptors were used. Cluster analysis showed the formation of four groups, where the populations of hard kernels with large cobs and soft kernels with short cobs were separated into different groups. The quantitative variables ear height, panicle length, percent lodging, number of kernels per row and ear weight recorded "D" indices of 0.75, showing themselves as discriminant variables in the formation of the groups, while the most discriminating qualitative variables were grain type (χ2 = 49.09***, P= 0.742, V= 0.64), grain color (χ2= 51.955***, P= 0.75, V=0.64), row arrangement (χ2= 18.11*, P=0.56, V=0.39), and grain surface shape (χ2 = 20.52*, P=0.58, V=0.41). Native maize races identified were Candela, Cubano, Tuxpeño, Tusilla and Uchima, observing significant genetic diversity in the populations studied. It was concluded that the characterized native corn populations were a valuable genetic resource for the conservation and use of the cereal.