Contrasting times in the production of green maize under defoliation and row spacing

Consumed fresh or processed, green maize is present in several regions of Brazil and the world. The scarcity of specific technical cultivation information for the Cerrado region and other regions of the country, besides the data on the correct sowing time, makes it impossible to obtain high yields. Therefore, the objective of this work was to evaluate the agronomic performance of the maize cultivar AG 1051, submitted to different spacing, defoliation, and sowing times. The experimental design was randomized blocks arranged in a 3x4x4 factorial scheme with four repetitions. Three sowing times(time I: 06/09/2017, time II: 08/12/2017, and time III: 12/17/2017), four row spacings (0.60; 0.70; 0.80; and 0.90 m), and four types of defoliation (removal of all leaves above the ear (AE), removal of all leaves below the ear (BE), removal of two leaves below and two leaves above the ear (ME) and the control without defoliation (CONTROL)) done in the VT stage were evaluated. The variables analyzed were the length of the ears without husk (ELH), the yield of the ear with and without husk (YWH) (YWHK) (kg ha-1), and dry matter content (DM) (%). The spacing of 0.60 m provides a greater yield of ears with and without husk (15,530.21 and 8,571.6 kg ha-1). Sowing time II provides greater YWH andYWHK. Defoliation AE reduces ELH in the sowing time III, andYWHK in times II and III.