Climate risk adaptation in dryland maize through cultivar adoption

Understanding the historical response of crop yields to climate variability is critical to shaping adaptation to climate risks, but that of dryland maize remains unclear in relation to cultivar improvement and agronomic management. Here, we show that improved yield and increased fertiliser application are cointegrated with cultivar adoption in South Africa. The key to understanding the yield–climate relationship in droughty environments is to consider fertiliser application along with cultivar adoption.