Desempenho de genótipos de milho submetidos a diferentes espaçamentos entre linhas

Abstract

Corn (Zea mays L.) is the crop that is expanding its frontiers the most in the global agricultural environment, standing out for presenting characteristics of great added value to human development, such as easy adaptability and versatility. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine the effect of different row spacings in the cultivation of corn hybrids on production variables. The experiment was implemented in two agricultural years (2021 and 2023) at the Embrapa Semiárido Farm, in Nossa Senhora da Glória - SE. A randomized block design was used, with a strip scheme, containing four replicates and three row spacings (0.60 m, 0.70 m and 0.80 m). Four genotypes were used in each year, with the genotypes GNZ 59, AG 8780, GNZ 16 EX3W07L VIP3 and GNZ 7720 VIP3 in 2021 and GNZ 7740 VIP3 replacing GNZ 16 EX3W07L in 2023. The morphological, physiological and productive variables were estimated. Analysis of variance was performed and when significant differences were observed between treatments, the means were compared by the Tukey test. In 2021, the significant variables were lodging, plant and ear height, male flowering, ear weight, grain weight, grain yield, Stay Green and prolificacy. In 2023, differences were observed for plant and ear height, ear length, ear diameter, number of grain rows in the ear, ear weight, grain weight, and grain yield, indicating that spacing provided important and significant variations in productive profitability in each year. The genotypes GNZ 59 and AG 8780 were the most productive in both years, with averages of 5,265.49 kg ha-1 and 5,275.95 kg ha-1 in 2021 and 7,721.91 kg ha-1 and 7,778.46 kg ha-1 in 2023, respectively. The 0.60 m spacing provided a higher yield in both years, suggesting that smaller spacing between rows favors the productive efficiency of the crop in the studied region.