The association between altitude, environmental variables, maize growth and yields in Kenya

SUMMARY A Kenya Highland maize was planted at three altitudes, 1268, 1890 and 2250 m. Development rate, dry-matter accumulation and leaf area production were recorded during vegetative growth, together with grain formation and dry-matter accumulation in the primary cob. Rainfall, insolation, soil and air temperatures were continuously recorded at all sites. Maize developed faster at low warm altitudes, the rate being dependent on soil and air temperature. During vegetative growth, this relationship could be satisfactorily explained by an integrated temperature, but during the reproductive phase, some allowance had to be made for over optimal temperatures at low warm altitudes. Altitude had little effect on crop leaf area at any particular development stage, but leaf area production rates were closely related to leaf emergence rates. Before establishment of complete ground cover, large differences in dry-matter accumulation rates were observed which appeared related to rate of leaf area production. Once full ground cover was established, crop growth rates became much more similar. Potential number of grains per embryonic primary cob was greatest at low altitudes, but the final number of grains per cob at harvest was greatest at high altitudes. Rate of increase of grain weight was constant and very similar at all sites until growth stopped abruptly at 69, 83 and 96 days after tasselling at low, medium and high altitudes respectively. Rate of accumulation and partition of total dry matter in the primary cobs was similar at all sites, but owing to greater duration of development at high altitudes, dry matter per cob increased with altitude. Large yield differences were found at harvest, yield decreasing with decreasing altitude. Yield differences were mainly due to variations in number of grains per plant, although grain size also contributed. In this and other trials it was shown that the number of grains per plant at harvest was closely related to the mean thermal growth rate (expressed in units of g/plant/growing degree day) during the grain site initiation period.