Maize can be grown under different climatic conditions in both tropical and warm-moderate latitudes. It is the third most important cereal crop after rice and wheat and is gaining much importance at the international level. A large number of improved hybrids (about 370) and cultivars (156) have been released for maize in India, which significantly contribute in enhancing country’s production and productivity. Since maize hybrids can give better yields compared to traditional landraces and cultivars, 100% coverage of maize hybrids is yet to be achieved in India. The biggest challenge in this is to produce sufficient quantity of good-quality seed, which is a science in itself. Currently, about 2.0 lakhs tons of hybrids seed is required for growing 100% hybrid maize in nearly 10.0 million ha maize land of the country. Organized sectors are producing nearly 100 thousand tons of it, but the remaining 100 thousand tons is still in shortage. As maize is a highly cross-pollinated crop, some special considerations must be made in its seed production. To produce hybrid corn seed, both male and female seeds must be sown in a specific ratio and isolation of different corn genotypes must be maintained to avoid any contamination. In addition, selecting a suitable site with the right soil texture, climate, and topography is critical. The hybrid seed production field must be at least 400 m away from other corn fields to avoid contamination from pollen of different genotypes. In case where there are no distance isolations available, the flowering time of two different maize genotype fields with the same maturity can be changed by different sowing dates of at least 20–25 days gap. This is known as time isolation and can be helpful in quality seeds production. The seed production field must be visited at various crop growth stages for removal of off-type plants and de-tasseling of the female at the required time. The seed production needs special attention for its weed, water, diseases, and insects-pest management. Harvesting at right moisture (18–25%) and then its proper drying, cleaning grading, and finally packing at moisture of 8–11% in moisture-proof bags is very much important for retaining its germination and other quality parameters.

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Maize Seed Production Technology with Special Reference to India

  • Bhupender Kumar,
  • Shyam Bir Singh,
  • Shankar Lal Jat,
  • Pravin Bagaria,
  • P. Lakshmi Soujanya,
  • Pardeep Kumar,
  • Krishan Kumar

摘要

Maize can be grown under different climatic conditions in both tropical and warm-moderate latitudes. It is the third most important cereal crop after rice and wheat and is gaining much importance at the international level. A large number of improved hybrids (about 370) and cultivars (156) have been released for maize in India, which significantly contribute in enhancing country’s production and productivity. Since maize hybrids can give better yields compared to traditional landraces and cultivars, 100% coverage of maize hybrids is yet to be achieved in India. The biggest challenge in this is to produce sufficient quantity of good-quality seed, which is a science in itself. Currently, about 2.0 lakhs tons of hybrids seed is required for growing 100% hybrid maize in nearly 10.0 million ha maize land of the country. Organized sectors are producing nearly 100 thousand tons of it, but the remaining 100 thousand tons is still in shortage. As maize is a highly cross-pollinated crop, some special considerations must be made in its seed production. To produce hybrid corn seed, both male and female seeds must be sown in a specific ratio and isolation of different corn genotypes must be maintained to avoid any contamination. In addition, selecting a suitable site with the right soil texture, climate, and topography is critical. The hybrid seed production field must be at least 400 m away from other corn fields to avoid contamination from pollen of different genotypes. In case where there are no distance isolations available, the flowering time of two different maize genotype fields with the same maturity can be changed by different sowing dates of at least 20–25 days gap. This is known as time isolation and can be helpful in quality seeds production. The seed production field must be visited at various crop growth stages for removal of off-type plants and de-tasseling of the female at the required time. The seed production needs special attention for its weed, water, diseases, and insects-pest management. Harvesting at right moisture (18–25%) and then its proper drying, cleaning grading, and finally packing at moisture of 8–11% in moisture-proof bags is very much important for retaining its germination and other quality parameters.