Sunflower Response to Application of L-Ascorbate Under Thermal Stress Associated with Different Sowing Dates

Unlike edaphic factors, it is difficult to control climatic conditions and their changes that affect plant growth and development. To deal with such posture, farmers have to cultivate their crops at the right time. From this point, over two–year of 2014 and 2015, a field experiment was performed at El-Nubaria region, El-Behaira Governorate, Egypt, to assess the response of sunflower to different combinations between sowing dates (early, mid and delayed) and ascorbic acid treatments (with ascorbic acid and without ascorbic acid). Ascorbic acid was sprayed at 30, 40 and 50 days after sowing. The results showed that sowing sunflower in mid sowing (May 21) achieved the highest values of cumulative heat units utilization efficiency as well as all growth and yield traits, while the lowest values were recorded under the delayed sowing date (June 21). Application of ascorbic acid was effective for promoting growth and yield traits under all studied sowing dates. Ascorbic acid achieved 11.6, 10.1, 10.7 and 12.9% increases under early sowing, and 9.5, 6.6, 8.6 and 10.3% increases under delayed sowing in head diameter, seed weight plant⁻¹, seed yield and oil yield, respectively. Comparing to mid sowing × without ascorbic acid, application of ascorbic acid alleviated seed yield losses associated early sowing from 15.7–6.6% and from 23.0–16.4% with delayed one. In conclusion, for remediating the thermal stressful impacts of early or late sowing of sunflower, farmers are advised to treat crop plants with ascorbic acid to avoid yield losses.