The high harvest losses associated with the mechanical harvesting of maize in China are currently a major barrier to the adoption of this technology. This paper summarizes works of literature regarding harvest losses from the combine harvesting of maize in China and abroad. The main findings are as follows: (1) In 2012-2019, 2987 samples data obtained from the major maize production areas of China showed that the average harvest loss was 345.2 kg/hm 2 (3.5% of the average yield), with losses ranging from 0 to 9288.5 kg/hm 2 ; (2) The harvest losses from combine harvesting are mainly caused by the dropping of ears. The ear losses include the pre-harvest loss caused by ear abscission, damage caused by maize borer, lodging, and the ear loss during combine harvesting, and the main pre-harvest loss is caused by lodging; (3) Harvest losses are affected by maize variety, planting mode, cultivation management, pests and diseases, weather conditions during harvesting, harvest date, combine harvester type, harvester adjustment, operator proficiency, and the terrain conditions of the maize field; (4) The harvest losses from combine harvesting are also related to the type of header, feeding and threshing methods, the adjustment of header stripping clearance, feeding amount, forward speed, cylinder or rotor speed, and the clearance between the cylinder and the concave of the harvester. However, the combine losses mainly come from header losses. In order to reduce the harvest losses, the following solutions were proposed: (1) Breed and select maize varieties which are resistant to lodging, especially during the field drying of mature grains, as well as those resistant to maize borer and stalk rot; (2) Select varieties suitable for grain harvest-which requires matching the accumulated-temperature demand of the maize hybrids, optimal plant density, row spacing, and irrigation and fertilizer management with the light and heat conditions of the production area while cultivating uniform populations and healthy plants-as well as preventing and controlling damage from maize borer, stalk rot, and ear rot, harvesting at the appropriate time; (3) Develop and select advanced maize combine harvesters, formulate standardized operating procedures for harvesting machinery, and standardize field operation; (4) select appropriate agricultural machinery and agronomic practices, and improve the training of maize producers and harvester operators.
A high grain breakage rate is the main problem that occurs during mechanical maize harvest in China. The breakage sensitivity of different varieties was significantly different, and the breakage resistance is heritable. Therefore, breakage resistant variety screening can help improve the field production efficiency and provide references for breeding work. In this study, 42 varieties of maize were harvested with the same mechanical parameters and the same manipulator on a range of harvest dates at experimental stations in Xinxiang, Henan Province, in 2017 and Changji, Xinjiang Province, in 2018 to determine the sensitivity of grain moisture content on grain breakage rate during machine harvest for different varieties. The integral value of the grain breakage rate curve corresponding to the range of 15% to 30% grain moisture content was used as an index that expressed the sensitivity of maize grains to breakage depending on grain moisture content (BSW). Forty-two varieties were categorized as having weak, intermediate, or strong BSW. Among the same four varieties in the two stations, Lianchuang 825 and Lianchuang 808 were classified as sensitive and fragile varieties, Shandan 650 was classified as an intermediate variety, Zeyu 8911 was divided into weak sensitive and breakage-resistance varieties in Xinxiang and intermediate varieties in Changji. The BSW classification results at the two experimental sites were generally consistent, indicating that breakage sensitivity due to moisture content may be a relatively stable genetic characteristic. This study suggested that the integral method for determining BSW can be used to assess the resistance of different maize varieties to grain breakage during mechanical harvesting. The integral method was used to identify twelve breakage-resistant varieties in Xinxiang Station, and six breakage-resistant varieties in Changji Station. This study provides a method for screening maize varieties that are suited to mechanical grain harvesting and for studying the mechanisms of grain breakage resistance.
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