CLASSIFICATION OF NORTHERN SPANISH POPULATIONS OF MAIZE BY METHODS OFNUMERICAL TAXONOMY .1. MORPHOLOGICAL TRAITS

Eighty six open-pollinated populations of maize (Zea mays L.) represen ting a wide climatic and geographical spectrum from the north and nort h-west of Spain have been classified based on morphological traits. in dividual data of 23 traits relating to earliness, plant and tassel str ucture and the shape of the ear and grain were analyzed using multivar iate analysis methods (Principal Component and Cluster Analysis). The first three principal components accounted for 64.5% of the total vari ation and they provided evidence of the relative discriminant value of each of the traits under consideration. The populations were grouped by the degree of their dissimilarity, based on Mahalanobis' generalize d distance, into four distinct subracial groups related to four geogra phically or climatically delineated areas. A simple hierarchical syste m of classification based on morphological traits is suggested.