The field experiment on maize (Zea mays L.) during the autumn of 2020 revealed the effects of irrigation periods and mulching on its growth and yield-related traits. The study, held at the Bad’at al-Musayyab region, Babylon province, Iraq, had the experiment laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with factorial arrangement, two factors, and three replications. The first factor was the irrigation intervals (4, 8, and 12 days), while the second comprised two mulching methods (straw mulching and no mulching). The irrigation intervals, mulching treatments, and their interactions revealed significant differences for most growth and yield-related traits in maize. The least irrigation interval (four days) excelled in achieving the highest mean values for plant height (195.00 cm), leaves per plant (16.31), leaf area (697.9 cm²), chlorophyll index (63.16 SPAD), ears per plant (1.88), grains per ear (602.5), and grain yield (12.55 t ha^-1), compared with the maize crop irrigated with a 12-day interval. The latter recorded the lowest means for the above-mentioned traits. The soil mulching treatment also excelled for the traits compared with non-mulching, which recorded the minimum values.

Keywords: Maize (Zea mays L.), irrigation intervals, soil mulching, interactions, growth and yield traits, physiological traits

Key findings: Maize (Zea mays L.) planting with straw mulching and irrigated every four days, promoted the growth and, eventually, boosted the yield components and grain yield of corn.