Cereal Chem 68:602-605   |  VIEW ARTICLE

Relationships Among Maize Quality Factors.

C. Dorsey-Redding, C. R. Hurburgh, Jr., L. A. Johnson, and S. R. Fox. Copyright 1991 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

Maize properties believed to affect yield and quality of maize products were correlated. Samples of 183 genetically diverse maize hybrids grown in central Iowa in 1987 and 195 in 1988 were analyzed for protein, oil, starch, bulk density (test weight), breakage susceptibility, kernel density, water absorptivity, hardness, and average kernel weight (1,000-grain weight). Data were adjusted to 15.5% moisture basis. Hardness showed a significant correlation (r greater than 0.6) with protein, test weight, and kernel density. Oil was correlated (r greater than 0.5) with density and starch content and, to a lesser extent (r greater than 0.4), with test weight and hardness. Prediction equations for hard-to-measure factors, hardness and density (R2 = 0.8, 0.7), were developed from protein, oil, and test weight. The 1988 data were used to validate the 1987 results. The 1987 and 1988 correlation coefficients agreed in that they always had the same sign and were generally close in value. The 1987 and 1988 prediction equations also agreed in that the mean difference between predicted and actual values for both data sets were not significantly different (P = 0.05).