Four agronomic traits were analysed including dry matter concentration (DMC) and dry matter yield (DMY) for stover, plant height (PHT) and days from planting to silking (DPS). We mapped quantitative trait loci (QTL) in three populations with doubled haploid lines (DHL), one RIL population and two testcross (TC) populations derived from crosses between two of the four populations mentioned above to elite tester lines, based on field phenotyping at multiple locations and years for each; 146–168 SSRs were used for genotyping of the four mapping populations. Significant high phenotypic and genotypic correlations were found for all traits at two locations, while DMC was negatively correlated with the other traits. A total of 42, 41, 54, and 45 QTL were identified for DMC, DMY, PHT, and DPS, respectively, with 9, 7, 12, and 7 major QTL for each trait. Most detected QTL displayed significant interactions with environment. Major QTL detected in more than two populations will contribute to marker‐assisted breeding and also to fine mapping candidate genes associated with maize agronomic traits.