Screening of Maize (Zea mays L.) Genotypes for Aluminium Toxicity Tolerance Using Field and in-vitro Approaches

Abstract

Aluminium (Al3+) toxicity severely limits maize productivity in acidic soils, particularly in the Terai region of North Bengal, highlighting the need to identify genotypes suitable for breeding programmes. The present study evaluated thirty-five maize genotypes during the kharif seasons of 2022 and 2023 under acidic soil conditions. Morphological and yield-related traits were analyzed using analysis of variance along with multivariate approaches including the rescaling method, principal component analysis, and membership index. Significant variation among the genotypes indicated substantial genetic variability, with plant height, ear height, final plant stand, and cob weight contributing substantially to the total variation. Based on pooled performance and rescaling analysis, genotypes AVT-30011, AVT-31006, AVT-33005, and AVT-31008 were identified as tolerant. In-vitro screening further validated their tolerance based on root growth performance under aluminium stress. These genotypes can be directly utilized as potential donor parents in hybrid breeding programmes aimed at developing aluminium-tolerant cultivars adapted to acidic soil environments.