Relationship between lodging, morphological characters and yield of varieties of maize (Zea mays L.)

Summary Field experiments were carried out in the early and late growing seasons in the rainforest zone of Nigeria to find out the relationship between lodging, morphological characters and yield of maize. Morphological characters associated with lodging were plant height, ear height and length of basal internode. There was a negative correlation between lodging and yield. Much of the lodging recorded, especially in the early growing season, was due to weak stems. Earliness, diameter of stem and leaf area had no relationship with lodging.