Stability and Adaptability of Early-Medium Maturing Maize Varieties

Field experiments were conducted at 23 sites in Poland during the 2021–2023 growing seasons to evaluate the interaction between genotypes and environments on grain yield and plant height in 15 maize varieties with medium-early maturity. The trials were mainly established using incomplete block designs. Linear mixed models were used to evaluate both traits, and variety stability and adaptability were assessed using Shukla’s stability variance, the simultaneous selection index, the HMRPGV index and the genotypic confidence index. The environmental variance component was found to be the largest among the estimated random variance components. Furthermore, varieties Inception and P8904 were found to combine high grain yield with broad adaptability, while LG31240 performed favourably when yield and stability were considered simultaneously. The analyses also revealed that air temperature in August significantly affected grain yield. Plant height differed among the analyzed environments. Finally, the results of this study suggest that variety recommendations should prioritize genotypes that combine high mean performance with yield stability and broad adaptation across contrasting environments.