Field trial analyses of wheat and cassava benefit from spatial correction
Spatial variation is a major source of error in agricultural field experiments affecting genotype performance prediction. Implementing statistical models that account for spatial effects can improve the prediction of genotype performance. This study evaluated the impact of the P-spline spatial correction method on the estimation of genetic parameters and AIC values in two distinct crops, wheat and cassava, using four models: Block, Block + Spatial, Block + Marker, and Block + Marker + Spatial. Analyses were performed on data from 115 and 68 trials obtained from the T3/WheatCAP and Cassavabase databases, respectively. As assessed using Cullis heritability estimates and AIC values, the results demonstrated that correcting for spatial variation improved analyses of grain yield, test weight, plant height, powdery mildew, stripe rust, and bacterial streak disease in wheat. Similar improvements were observed in cassava for dry matter content, dry yield, and plant height. However, no improvement was observed for cassava mosaic disease or bacterial blight. These results were consistent whether or not marker effects were fitted in the models. This study demonstrates that incorporating spatial correction into statistical analyses substantially improves the precision of variety evaluation. By accounting for field heterogeneity, spatial modeling complements experimental design and enhances the accuracy of treatment comparisons. Therefore, integrating robust experimental designs with appropriate spatial analyses is essential for achieving optimal precision and reliability in field trial evaluations.
Authors
- Clay Sneller (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4195-4743)
- Lucı́a Gutiérrez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2957-3086)
- Chiedozie Egesi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9063-2727)
- Jianli Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5932-0816)
- Esten Mason
- David Waring (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9971-9776)
- Lukas A. Mueller (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8640-1750)
- Nicholas Santantonio (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4351-4023)
- Eder Jorge de Oliveira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8992-7459)
- Jean‐Luc Jannink (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4849-628X)
- Jessica Elaine Rutkoski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8435-4049)
- Katherine Frels (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3032-5570)
- Tesfahun Alemu Setotaw (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3794-8829)
- Jinha Jung (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1176-3540)
- Mohsen Mohammadi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4536-1200)
- Michael Kanaabi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8162-6640)
- Eric Olson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4527-1723)
- Mark E. Sorrells (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7367-2663)
- Margaret R Krause (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1154-337X)
- Christine Nyaga
Institutions
- University of Nebraska–Lincoln (US)
- Agricultural Research Service (US)
- Oregon State University (US)
- University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
- University of Idaho (US)
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US)
- National Root Crops Research Institute (NG)
- Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (BR)
- Cornell University (US)
- Purdue University West Lafayette (US)
- International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (NG)
- Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture & Health (US)
- National Agricultural Research Organisation (UG)
- Embrapa Cassava & Fruits (BR)
- The Ohio State University (US)
- Virginia Tech (US)
- Michigan State University (US)
- Ithaca College (US)
- Colorado State University (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- PLoS ONE
- Published
- 2026-08-19
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0354968
- Primary Topic
- Cassava research and cyanide
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
- Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture