Weather Conditions and Maturity Group Impacts on the Infestation of First Generation European Corn Borers in Maize Hybrids in Croatia

Abstract

Overwintering success and weather conditions are the key factors determining the abundance and intensity of the attack of the first generation of European corn borers (ECB). The tolerance of maize to the 1st generation of ECB infestation is often considered to be connected with the maize maturity time. The aims of this research were (I) to examine the reactions of different maize FAO maturity groups in term of the damage caused by ECB larvae, (II) to analyze the influence of four climatic regions of Croatia regarding the damage caused by ECB larvae, and (III) to correlate observed damage between FAO maturity groups and weather conditions. First ECB generation damage has been studied in the two-year field trial with 32 different hybrids divided into four FAO maturity groups (eight per group) located at four locations with different climatic conditions. The results showed a lack of correlation between the FAO maturity group and the percent of damage. The percent of damage was positively correlated with the average air temperature in June (r = 0.59 for 2017 and r = 0.74 in 2018, p = 0.0001) within the range from 20 to 24.5 °C and was negatively correlated with the relative air humidity (r = −0.58 in 2017 and r = −0.77 in 2018, p = 0.0001) within the range of 50% to 80%. Our results provide a better understanding of the different factors that influence ECB damage. The obtained data could be used to predict the damage from the first generation of ECB under the weather conditions of different regions.