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Environmental factors such as temperature and available moisture significantly affect the development of yield components in grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]. However, effect of these factors may vary among plant growth stages. This study was conducted in the field to determine the relative importance of yield components and the effects of environmental factors in two growth periods, planting to bloom (Period 1) and bloom to physiological maturity (Period 2), on yield and its components in 46 sorghum hybrids tested in contrasting field environments. Number of seed was the major contributing component of yield, but the relative importance of seed weight to yield compared to number of seed increased from lownight-temperature to high-night-temperature environments. Number of seeds head–1 was more important than number of heads in affecting variation in number of seed and yield among sorghum hybrids. Rate of grainfill day–1 accounted for more variation in seed weight than rate of fill per growing degree unit (GDU), but both were more important than the length of grainfill period. The relationship between the mean yield and the total GDU of environments was quadratic (R2=0.70), and GDU in the range of 1250 to 1350 favored development of high yields. Slow rate of GDU accumulation in Period 1 coupled with a relatively high rate in Period 2 was associated with high sorghum yields in high-night-temperature environments. In low-night-temperature environments, high GDU accumulation rate in both Period 1 and Period 2 favored high yields. Within an environment, the GDU accumulation rate was important to yield through its effects on seed weight. Although rain accounted for a significant proportion of variability in yield and its components in most environments, its effects generally were less important than those of GDU and GDU accumulation rate. The results indicate the importance of GDU and rate of GDU accumulation to yield and yield component development across diverse environments, and they demonstrate the need to exploit genetic variation of metabolic efficiency in grainfill in breeding programs designed for stress environments.
Key Words: Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench • Physiological maturity • Grainfill • Number of seed • Seed weight • Growing degree unit • Temperature • Rain
2 Former graduate research assistant (currently associate professor, Dep. of Mathematics and Computer Science, St. Cloud State Univ., St. Cloud, MN 56301), professor, and associate professor, Dep. of Agronomy, Univ. of Nebraska.
Received for publication August 29, 1984.
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