SOIL AND GENOTYPE INFLUENCES ON YIELD AND NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF MAIZE HYBRID PARENTS

Eastern Croatia is important area for maize seed production where parental components of single-cross maize hybrids are more susceptible to environmental stress compared with their hybrid progeny. Aim of this study was to determine yield response of nine commercial female parents of maize hybrids in seed production to two different soil types (loess and eutric cambisol) in two years. Average seed yield of nine maize inbred lines was significantly highest on loess soil in 2006. In 2007 though, due to extreme drought and heat, yield on this location was reduced on more than a half of previous year. On contrast, there was no significant difference between years for yield on eutric cambisol. Preliminary results for mineral status of phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) in ear-leaf and seed showed that there was no variation among inbred lines for these traits within and among location(s) in 2006 indicating that soil type did not affect concentrations of P and K in plants. Extreme dry and hot weather during summer of 2007 had notably less effect on seed yield on eutric cambisol than on loess soil. It suggests that eutric cambisol appears to be more appropriate soil type for seed production of maize due to more stable seed yields.