Results of the research on the influence of sowing date on the chemical composition of maize grain at r.d.s.c.b tg. mureş

Climate changes, more prominently visible in recent years, have alerted scientific research and, implicitly, the agricultural sector, which is most affected by these changes. Maize, is one of the most widespread field crops in our country, is also the most exposed to atmospheric and soil drought pronounced in the summer months. In this context, we initiated and tested the following experimental variants: earlier sowing, when in the soil, at a depth of 10 cm, 6 °C is achieved, sowing in the optimal period, at 10°C in the soil and sowing after the optimal period, following the evolution of both American and Romanian hybrids. The temperature evolution during the vegetation period of the crop, in the three years of the study, did not show significant differences, the influence on the change in the chemical composition of the grains was not obvious. The evolution of precipitation was fluctuating over months and years. The studies focused on the influence of the sowing season on the production and quality of corn grains in the area of the Research and Development Station for Cattle Breeding Târgu Mureș (RDSB Târgu Mureș). According to the data recorded in the 2018-2020 agricultural years, in the geopedological conditions of the Sângeorgiu de Mureș area, the studied hybrids responded well to early sowing, and the composition of the grains did not register substantial changes. The polyfactorial experiment was realized in the years 2018, 2019 and 2020 in the experimental field of the Plant Laboratory at RDSCB Târgu Mureș, according to the method of subdivided plots, the first factor the sowing date, with 3 gradations: the first sowing date, an early sowing was realised when 6ºC were recorded in the soil; the 2nd sowing date, an optimal sowing date when 10ºC was achieved in the soil and the 3rd sowing date, two weeks after the 2nd. Factor 2 is represented by the 4 tested corn hybrids.