Effect of sowing date on yield and some agronomic and physiological characteristic of three grain sorghum cultivars

To evaluate the effects of different planting dates on some agronomic, physiological characteristics and yield of grain sorghum, an experiment was designed and carried out in Agricultural and Natural Resources and Education Center, Yazd province, Iran, in a split plot experiment based on Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with 4 replications in 2012 & 2013 growing seasons. Five different sowing date (19 Apr, 5 May, 20 May, 5 Jun and 20 Jun) and three genotypes (Payam, Sepideh and Kimia) were allocated in main plots and subplots, respectively. Results showed that the highest amount of all measured traits were obtained from Sepideh genotype in first and second sowing dates. The highest grain yield (8424 kg/ha) was harvested from Sepideh genotype at sowing date of 19 Apr. Based on the results of the present investigation, it appeared that in similar agro-climatic conditions, earlier sowing in spring may result to a better harvest.