Journal ArticleDOI
Improving Nitrogen-Use Efficiency in European Maize
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TLDR
A trend toward increased efficiency of direct selection under LN conditions was evident with decreasing grain yield at LN, and variations in genotype x N as well as G x L x N level interaction variances were significant in most experiments.Abstract:
Maize (Zea mays L.) cultivars with improved N-use efficiency would be beneficial for low-input production systems. Our objective was to estimate quantitative genetic parameters to optimize breeding programs for improving productivity under low N levels. Results of 21 field experiments with European breeding materials belonging to the flint and dent gene pool are presented. The study was performed during 1989 and 1999 at several locations in typical maize growing regions of Germany and France. All experiments were conducted at high (HN) and low (LN, no N fertilizer applied) N levels. Average grain yield was reduced by 37% at LN compared with HN. Coefficients of genotypic correlation between HN and LN were variable with an average of r G = 0.74 for grain yield and generally high for grain dry matter content. For grain yield, analyses of variance were computed from relative data, where plot values were expressed as percentage of the trial mean. Variances caused by genotype (G), G x location (L) interaction, and error effects were higher at LN compared with HN, with similar heritabilities at both N levels. For the untransformed data, components of variance were higher at HN than at LN. Genotype x N as well as G x L x N level interaction variances were significant in most experiments. Efficiency of improvement of grain yield at LN through indirect selection at HN was 70% compared with direct selection at LN. A trend toward increased efficiency of direct selection under LN conditions was evident with decreasing grain yield at LN.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
The challenge of improving nitrogen use efficiency in crop plants: towards a more central role for genetic variability and quantitative genetics within integrated approaches
TL;DR: A critical overview is provided on how understanding of the physiological and molecular controls of N assimilation under varying environmental conditions in crops has been improved through the use of combined approaches, mainly based on whole-plant physiology, quantitative genetics, and forward and reverse genetics approaches.
Journal ArticleDOI
Understanding plant response to nitrogen limitation for the improvement of crop nitrogen use efficiency
TL;DR: There are several potential genetic and molecular approaches for the improvement of crop NUE discussed in this review, and increased knowledge of how plants respond to different N levels as well as to other environmental conditions is required.
Journal ArticleDOI
In winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), post-anthesis nitrogen uptake and remobilisation to the grain correlates with agronomic traits and nitrogen physiological markers
TL;DR: In wheat, nitrogen uptake and remobilisation after flowering contributes largely, in Northern countries, to grain yield and grain protein content, and the use of physiological traits such as NR and GS activities as markers of the wheat N status is discussed.
Journal ArticleDOI
Breeding for abiotic stresses for sustainable agriculture.
TL;DR: There is good potential for directly breeding for adaptation to low N while retaining an ability to respond to high N conditions and a great potential of breeding genetic resistance for salinity and aluminium tolerance through the contributions of wild relatives.
Book ChapterDOI
Maize production in a changing climate: Impacts, adaptation, and mitigation strategies
Jill E. Cairns,Kai Sonder,Pervez Haider Zaidi,Nele Verhulst,Nele Verhulst,George Mahuku,Raman Babu,Sudha K. Nair,Biswajit Das,Bram Govaerts,M.T. Vinayan,Zerka Rashid,J.J. Noor,P. Devi,F. M. San Vicente,Boddupalli M. Prasanna +15 more
TL;DR: In this article, a review focusing on achievements in stress tolerance breeding and physiology and presents future tools for quick and efficient germplasm development is presented to increase maize system resilience to climate-related stresses and mitigate the effects of future climate change.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
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Journal ArticleDOI
Nitrogen management and the future of food : lessons from the management of energy and carbon
TL;DR: As the agriculture and food system evolves to contain its impacts on the nitrogen cycle, several lessons can be extracted from energy and carbon.