Productive Behavior of Experimental Lines and Rainfed Rice Varieties in Mexico

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is an essential global crop. In Mexico, per capita consumption has increased in the last decade, but the country still depends on imports to meet domestic demand. Faced with this challenge, genetic improvement and the selection of varieties adapted to local agroclimatic conditions are key strategies to increase productivity. There-fore, the productive performance of 36 rice genotypes was evaluated under tropical rainfed conditions in Tabasco, Mexico. A randomized complete block experimental design with three replications was used, where meteorological and agronomic variables of the rice genotypes were measured. A cluster analysis was also performed to detect differences between groups of genotypes. The results indicated significant differences in plant height, number of grains per panicle and grain yield (P < 0.001). Genotypes with higher yield po-tential were identified, highlighting the Gulf genotypes FL-16 and PCT-MADR-682-2L-2-3-3SR-2P, which showed higher yield and resistance to key diseases such as Pyricularia oryzae, white leaf virus, grain spot and bacterial blast. Cluster analysis detected high phenotypic variability with seven main groups. The findings emphasize the importance of genetic diversification and selection of materials adapted to specific envi-ronmental conditions, contributing to the development of strategies to improve rice pro-duction in Mexico.