Desempenho agronômico e qualidade fisiológica de híbridos de milho sob restrição hídrica

Abstract

Stress caused by water deficiency is one of the main limiting factors in agriculture. Given the above, the objective of this study was to evaluate the growth, agronomic performance and physiological quality of seeds from corn hybrids under different upper soil moisture limits proportional to field capacity (CC). The experiment was conducted from August / 2018 to January / 2019 in two stages, in the field, in the Experimental area located at Campus Unimontes in Janaúba, MG, and the second stage, in the Seed Analysis Laboratory, Unimontes. Five upper limit soil water replacement conditions based on field capacity (100, 85, 70, 55 and 40%) were established, providing controlled soil water conditions to two maize hybrids (BRS 1040 and DKB 390), in the subdivided parcel scheme, with replenishment in the parcel. The experimental design was a randomized block design with four replications. At the time of the field experiment biometric and production evaluations were made. Subsequently, the seeds produced were sent to the laboratory for evaluation of their physiological quality. The data were submitted to statistical analysis. Under water restriction conditions, the yield of the plants of the studied corn hybrids is negatively affected. The hybrid DKB 390 excelled in relation to the hybrid BRS 1040. Both hybrids proved to be a good cultivation alternative for the edaphoclimatic conditions of northern Minas Gerais. Seeds produced by the hybrid DKB 390 expressed better physiological potential. Irrigation blades to maintain soil moisture between 75.18 to 94.04% of field capacity favor the physiological quality of the seeds produced.