Yield and growth of maize in different plant arrangements

Population and plant arrangement affects the productivity of maize by interfering in the photosynthetic active radiation and the availability of water and nutrients. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of plant population and row spacing on growth and yield of maize. The experiment was conducted in Indiana (SP), from January 7 to June 2, 2008. The treatments consisted of plant populations of maize (45, 60 and 75 thousand plants ha(-1)), combined in two row spacing (0.45 m and 0.90 m). The experimental design was a randomized complete block with four replications in a factorial 3x2. The height of plant, stem diameter, insertion of ear, grain yield and yield components. The results were analyzed by ANOVA and Tukey test at 5% probability. The hybrid AG 1051 responds positively in terms of grain yield with increasing plant population of 45 thousand to 75 thousand plants ha(- 1), even with symptoms of intra-specific competition indicated by the highest plant growth in height and the lowest stem diameter. The spacing of 0.90 m between rows promotes greater productivity of hybrid maize AG 1051, with contribution to the production of grains per spike.