Response Of Maize Varieties To Sowing Dates In Inner Terai Region, Dang, Nepal

Sowing dates and varieties affect the productivity of maize. A field experiment was conducted to find out the response of maize hybrids to sowing dates on growth and productivity of maize in spring season at Lamahi, Dang in 2019. The experiment was laid out in two factor factorial Randomized Complete Block Design with four replications. The treatment consisted of combination of three different sowing dates (February 1, February12 and February 23) and two maize varieties (Arun-2 i.e. OPV and hybrid Bioseed-9220).The result revealed that earlier planting on February 1 produced the highest yield (8265 Kg ha-1) which was significantly superior than latter planting of February 12(6099 kg ha-1)and February 23 (5934 kg ha-1).The higher yield in earlier planting was due to significantly higher no of kernel per ear, non-significant but higher number of cob per unit area, thousand grain weight. Similarly, Bioseed 9220 produced higher yield (7798 kg ha-1) compared to Arun-2 (5,734 kg ha-1). The higher yield of hybrid Bioseed 9220 was because of higher number of cob per unit area harvested and more number of kernel per cob. Therefore, earlier planting with hybrid maize is recommended in spring season of Dang and locations with similar climatic conditions for higher productivity of maize.