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Maize (Zea mays L.) is one of the most important crops for human and animal consumption and is grown for both grain and silage. It is now increasingly being used for the production of bioethanol. In global terms, it is the third most important nutritional crop after wheat and rice. These three crops together are the major contributors to human and animal food security. Total area coverage and output of maize in 2012 in Serbia was 1.2 Mha and 6.2 Tg, respectively. Most of the maize is produced in the province of Vojvodina in the northern lowlands of Serbia that are part of the Pannonian Plain. Droughts during the growing season are frequent in this region and are caused by climate change [1]. As a result, Pol. AbstractSoil water deficit has an adverse effect on crop productivity and is one of the main limiting factors of global food security. Field experiments were conducted in Vojvodina, Serbia, to expand and improve knowledge about the effects of different levels of irrigation on maize grain yield and quality. The studied irrigation treatments were: full irrigation (I 100 ), 75% (I 75 ) and 50% (I 50 ) of I 100 , and no irrigation (I 0 ) -rainfed. The irrigation level affects maize grain yield; protein, starch, and oil content; and mineral composition. The results show that that yield decreases with increasing water deficit in three study years. On average, full irrigation results in the highest oil content and rainfed conditions in the lowest. The starch content increases and the oil content decreases with decreasing irrigation. Irrigation significantly increases the concentrations of K, Mg, Fe, Mn, and Zn, and reduces the Ca concentration compared to the rainfed treatment. A 25% water deficit (I 75 ) has a positive effect on certain maize grain nutrients and the yield is significantly reduced. The highest grain yield and oil content are achievable with full irrigation. For good nutrientional quality of maize, treatment I 75 can be proposed under similar soil and climate conditions.

The goal of the present research is to determine an effective sprinkler irrigation strategy for soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] in temperate climate conditions, in order to maximize yields and seed quality. A three-year field experiment with four different irrigation treatments was conducted on Calcic Chernozem in the Vojvodina region of Serbia. The irrigation regimes included: no irrigation; full irrigation (I₁₀₀); and two deficit irrigation treatments – 65% of I₁₀₀ (I₆₅) and 40% of I₁₀₀. The irrigation treatments generally had a statistically significant effect on the increase of soybean yield and protein content. Irrigation did not have a significant effect on the oil content. In general, irrigation increased K, P, Mg, Mn, Cu, Zn and B concentrations and decreased Ca and Fe concentrations in soybean seed. The results show that irrigation with the largest amount of water (treatment I₁₀₀) provided no potential benefit in terms of soybean yield and chemical composition. Treatment I₆₅, which exhibited the most favourable watering conditions, is the best choice to maximize yield and ensure a good chemical composition of soybean under these agroecological conditions.

Two-year trials have been conducted in Technological Research Center in Zajecar. Research objects were six malting barley genotypes. The experimental crop was top dressed with the following amounts of nitrogen: 40, 60, 80 and 100 kg ha-1. The control variant was not top dressed. The obtained results showed that the genotypes reacted significantly to the increased amounts of nitrogen by changing their production characteristics and seed quality. In addition, the genotypes demonstrated certain varietal differences. A new genotype, Premijum, was highest yielding and it had the lowest total proteins in the grain. The genotype NS-525 had the highest 1000-grain weight (46.8 g). The effect of nitrogen on the studied characteristics depended on N quantity applied. Increasing amounts of nitrogen decrease positive effects on spike length, number of grains per spike, 1000-grain weight and yield. However, the protein content in grain kept increasing to the highest nitrogen dose, which lowered the quality of malting barley. The highest yield was obtained by applying 80 and 100 kg ha-1 of nitrogen, depending on the year of study

Physical properties of long-term irrigated fluvisols, Gajić et al.

Summary: The goal of this research is to determine the effects of different levels of water deficit (I

In the Vojvodina region, drought is an important factor limiting grain yield in maize. The aims of this research were to compare irrigation scheduling in maize (cv. ZP SC 684), and to evaluate grain yield and ear characteristics. A 3-year field experiment was carried out in the Vojvodina region, a northern part of the Republic of Serbia (384 mm of rainfall in the maize-growing period). Maize was subjected to four irrigation levels (rainfed - I0 and supply at 80-85% - I1, 70-75% - I2 and 60-65% - I3 of field capacity). The results indicated a large yearly variability, mainly due to a rainfall event at the flowering, fertilization and grain filling stages. A significant irrigation effect was observed for all the variables under study, with significant differences between the three irrigation treatments. The grain yield ranged between 8.73 and 16.33 t ha-1. The highest grain yield of maize (average of 15.08 t ha-1) was in the I1 treatment, while the non-irrigated (I0) treatment had the lowest yield (average of 10.20 t ha-1), a 35% grain yield reduction. With the decrease of irrigation water, the grain yield of maize decreased. The most distinctive impact the irrigation had on maize yield was during the warm and very dry growth period of the year of 2008. Maize in the Vojvodina region can be cultivated with acceptable yields while saving irrigation water and maximizing resource-use efficiency.