Non-destructive leaf area measurement in maize (Zea mays L.)

In this research, leaf area prediction model was developed for some leaf-used maize (Zea mays L.) cultivars namely Coluna, Luce, Maveric, Ranchero, TTM-813, Zamora and RX-788 grown in Black Sea region of Turkey. Lamina width, length and leaf area were measured without destroying the leaf to develop the models. The actual leaf areas of the plants were measured by PLACOM Digital Planimeter and multiple regression analysis with Excel 2003 computer package program was performed for the plants separately. The produced leaf area prediction models in the present study were formulized as LA = a - (b x W2) + [c x (W x L)] where LA is leaf area, W is leaf width, L is leaf length and a, b, c are coefficiencies. R2 values for maize cultivars tested varied with species from 0.95 in Luce to 0.98 in Maveric. All R2 values and standard errors were found to be significant at the p < 0.001 level.