Growth and Yield Characteristics of 250 Corn Hybrids in Arkansas Through Genomes to Fields

With the looming population worldwide and the pressure on arable land, fresh water, and soil fertility, increasing crop productivity on current land is crucial. Exploiting genetics as well as management are key technologies to improve yields. The Genomes to Fields (G2F) project is focused on improving corn yields through broad-based testing of multiple germplasm pools across multiple locations. The project involved 36 locations in 17 states and Canada in 2016. Arkansas joined for the first time in 2016 and planted in two locations, the Lon Mann Cotton Research Station of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station network, and at the Arkansas State University research and teaching farm. The two locations are at approximately the same longitudinal location and approximately 75 miles apart north to south. Each of the 250 hybrids was planted in 2-row plots in two replicates at each site. Multiple data points were collected for each plot including stand counts, flowering time, plant height, ear height, plot weight, moisture, and test weight calculated. In addition to the data required by the project coordinators, the harvested grain from the Arkansas plots are being phenotyped using a LemnaTec Scanalyzer to determine consistency of the kernels among reps and locations.