Effect of Sowing date and plant density on yield and yield components of three maize (Zea mays L.) genotypes in Takhar climatic conditions of Afghanistan

Abstract

Crops are the main source of human food supply and among them, grains are more important, among cereals, corn (Zea mays L.) is an important crop due to its high grain and forage yield potential. The research experiment was conducted on maize to find out the effect of different sowing dates and plant density among three genotypes on the performance of maize, in the spring of the 2020 growing season in the Bagh-e-Zakhirah Research Farm of Takhar province Afghanistan. The experiment was laid out as a split-plot factorial in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Three planting dates (May 5, May 21, and June 5) as the main factor, three plant densities of 6.5, 8, and 10 plants/m2, and three genotypes, SC260, SC600, and SC302 were considered as sub-factors. All treatments sowing date, plant density, genotype, and only interaction effect of sowing date × plant density showed significantly different effects (p < 0.01) on yield and yield components. The results of the present investigation revealed that the highest grain yield 6.99 ton/h was obtained from the sowing date (May 5) and plant density of 6.5 plants/m2 and the lowest grain yield 6.21 ton/h was obtained from the sowing date (June 5) and plant density of 10 plants/m2. In general, the results showed that the sowing on the 5th of May is superior to the 5th of June in terms of grain yield and yield components, and among the three corn genotypes, the SC260 genotype is more batter than the SC600 and SC302 genotypes under the environment condition. Therefore considering all results the first week of May as the sowing date and 65000 plants/h with SC260 genotype could be recommended to the maize grower for the most effective for producing maize.