ASSESSING MAIZE (Zea mays) ACCESSIONS FROM EDO STATE UNDER WATER LOGGING CONDITIONS AT 5 LEAF STAGE

This study evaluated the tolerance of maize accessions Edo Statefrom South-South Nigeria to waterlogging stress, a major constraint to maize productivity. This study was conducted in a screen house at the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, the experiment was in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with six Accessions from South -South replicated three times. The Accessions were obtained from Aduwawa, Agbede, Auchi, New Benin, and Useh were pre-treated, and waterlogging was induced at the five-leaf stage (5LS) for four weeks. Neem leaves were used as an organic insecticide, and fertilizer was applied to support growth. Data on plant height, leaf dimensions, number of leaves, tasseling, silking, pollen shedding, ear height, adventitious roots, and plant mortality were collected as from 2 weeks after planting . The results showed
significant plant death due to hypoxia, with few surviving genotypes like Useh,Aduwawa and New Benin but failed to produce grain, likely due to high screen house temperatures that could have disrupted pollination.The results also showed that accession from Useh
showed the highest growth characteristics on leaf breadth and leaf area, despite the waterlogging effect. Some Accessions also showed high value for healthy leaves under waterlogging, indicating that amongst all accessions used in the study, Accession Useh
has the potential ability to grow and thrive on waterlogged soil.