Dr. Wilson et al., MODEL ANALYSIS OF TEMPERATURE AND SOLAR-RADIATION LIMITATIONS TO MAIZE POTENTIAL PRODUCTIVITY IN A COOL CLIMATE, Field crops research, 43(1), 1995, pp. 1-18
In cool-temperate climates, potential maize grain yields are variable
and often small. Low temperature prolongs growth duration, reduces cro
p growth rate, and increases the risk of frost terminating grain filli
ng prematurely. The objectives of this study were (1) to assess the pe
rformance of a radiation- and temperature-driven maize simulation mode
l in a cool-temperate climate and (2) to modify the model to allow the
effects of temperature and solar radiation on growth and yield to be
simulated in both warm and cool climates. Modifications to the model t
o improve simulation in the cool climate included a changed phenology
response to low temperature, a reduction in radiation-use efficiency a
nd rate of harvest index increase at low temperature, and an increased
time lag between silking and the start of grain growth at low tempera
ture. The modified model gave good agreement between observed independ
ent datasets and simulated values of grain and total biomass yield in
tropical, subtropical and cool-temperate locations; root mean square d
eviations of the comparisons averaged across all locations were about
12% of the mean values. Thus the utility of the model has been enhance
d for a wider range of climates. The study also showed that the conclu
sion from previous analyses with the model in warm climates that the h
ighest potential maize yields occur at locations with a combination of
high incident radiation, low temperature and long growth duration may
not be valid if mean temperature during growth is less than ca. 18 de
grees C, However, this condition would only occur in cool-temperate cl
imates.