Field Evaluation of Rice Genotypes from the Two Cultivated Species (Oryza sativa L. and Oryza glaberrima Steud.) and Their Interspecifics for Tolerance to Drought

A total of 327 rice (Oryza spp.) genotypes were screened for tolerance to drought at the Africa Rice Center in Cotonou, Benin, in 2007 and 2008. Plants were subjected to full irrigation from sowing to harvest or to 21-d drought from 34 d after sowing. Drought-affected plants showed narrower leaves, reduced grain yield, and shorter stature. Tillering and plant maturity were negatively affected by drought whereas values for leaf temperature and leaf greenness were significantly higher under drought than under control condition. Under control condition, for 54% of genotypes, flowering occurred between 71 and 90 d after sowing. But under drought, flowering occurred at 90 or more days after sowing for the majority of genotypes. Significant genotype x environment interactions were observed for plant height, leaf greenness, flowering, grain yield, maturity, leaf rolling, and leaf tip burning. More traits were correlated with grain yield under drought for Oryza glaberrima Steud. than for other genotype groups. No relationship was observed between plant recovery ability and all other traits selected. More than 90% of plants evaluated resumed growth after drought in both years. TOG6208, TOG5691, TOG5591, TOG6594, and RAM122 were identified as best performing genotypes in terms of grain yield under drought. Their performance was similar to that of most of the 24 top yielding in terms of leaf rolling, leaf tip burning, and plant recovery after drought release.