In a global analysis researchers found that for dense planting a significant increase in maize yield from 10 to 250 Mg per hectare required a relatively high maximum leaf area index LAI of 674 at the

In a global analysis, researchers found that for dense planting, there was a significant increase in maize yield from 1.0 to 25.0 Mg per hectare when a high maximum leaf area index (LAI) of 6.74 was achieved at the silking stage, and a relatively large LAI of 3.35 was necessary at maturity.