Correlation and Path Coefficient Analysis of Drought Tolerant Open Pollinated Maize (Zea mays L.) Genotypes in Ethiopia

The development of high yielding genotypes of maize is greatly influenced by the features that are associated with yield and yield components. The Jigjiga Pastoral and Agricultural Research Center's main experimental station was the study site for twenty-four open pollinated maize genotypes planted in a randomized complete block design. The study's objectives were to determine the relationship between and the direct and indirect effects of different character components on yield. The yield-related components (harvest index, thousand kernel weights, number of ears per plant, number of kernels per row, number of ears per plot, biological yield, plant height, leaf area index, anthesis-silking interval, and ear height) of grain yield exhibited significantly positive phenotypic and genotypic correlations. However, a phenotypic association that was considerably unfavorable was found between grain yield and flowering features. Days to silking and number of ears per plot had strong genotypic negative direct impacts, whereas harvest index and biological yield similarly had the greatest genotypic positive direct effects on the main trait. Therefore, the combination of these features along with yield could be used in indirect selection indices for the breeding by selection of potentially high yielding maize genotypes.