The effect of planting dates on the growth and yield of different wheat varieties

• Shahd Hamoud Mutlaq and Wafaa Mohammed Lafteh

  Author

The experiment was conducted during the 2025-2026 growing season at the field trial farm of the College of Agriculture - Al-Qasim Green University, located in southern Babylon province, at latitude 32.40°N and longitude 44.39°E. The aim was to study the effect of planting dates on the growth and yield of different bread wheat cultivars. The experimental design was implemented as a factorial experiment with a split-plot arrangement. A randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replicates was used to distribute the total treatments. The main plots included three planting dates (10 November , 1 December , and December 20), while the subplots included four cultivars (IPA 99, Antlo, Nizar, and Wafia). The results showed that planting on the first date, 10 November , resulted in a significant advantage in most of the studied traits. It achieved the highest average plant height (103.18 cm), flag leaf area (49.18 cm²), weight of 1000 grains (37.96 g), and grain yield (5.851 tons ha⁻¹). The second planting date was excelled for the remaining studied traits. The results also showed that Wafia cultivar was excelled in the number of days from planting to 50% flowering. The growing period was 96.91 days, with a grain yield of 5.746 tons ha⁻¹. Nizar cultivar excelled in flag leaf area, reaching 47.97 cm². However, IPA 99 cultivar excelled in plant height, reaching 103.52 cm, and Antlo cultivar excelled in 1000-grain weight, reaching 38.00 grams. The interaction between planting dates and cultivars showed a significant advantage in most of the studied plants. The interaction between the second planting date (1 December ) and the IPA 99 cultivar resulted in the highest average plant height, reaching 112.50 cm. The interaction between the first planting date (10 November ) and Nizar cultivar resulted in the highest average leaf area, reaching 55.68 cm². The results obtained from the study showed that the interaction between the first planting date (10 November ) and Nizar cultivar resulted in the highest 1000-grain weight, reaching 40.68 grams. The second interaction between the second planting date (1 December ) and Wafia cultivar also gave the highest results. It achieved the highest grain yield of 8.207 tons ha⁻¹.

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