Our observations agree well with the reports of Yin et al.
(2011) that the strongest relationships between maize yield and maize height were presented at the V12 stage.
In addition, the SEM model also emphasized that maize height was directly regulated by soil moisture (Fig. 2), suggesting that soil moisture are important for maize height both before sowing and at the V12 stage.
Abrecht and Carberry (1993) stated that non-lethal water deficit during the growth of maize results in marked reduction in plant height.
The findings in this study are in agreement with the reports of Verhulst et al. (2009), which affirmed that soil water is one of the vital limiting factors of agricultural system.