Irrigation use constitutes an alternative to improve maize production in Central Minas Gerais State, Brazil. However, even under adequate water supply conditions, other environmental factors may influence maize crop growth and development and may, ultimately, affect grain yield. This study aimed to establish a sowing window for irrigated maize crop, based on simulation results obtained with the decision support model CSM-CERES-Maize. Simulations were made for crop management conditions of Riacho´s Farm, located in Matozinhos, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. It was employed the model´s seasonal tool, along with a data set containing 46 years of weather data records, to simulate maize yield for weekly sowing scenarios, starting on August 1 st and ending on July 24 th of each year. One defined an irrigated maize sowing window, taking into account the yield break risk that a farmer would be willing to take. The model proved to be an interesting tool to assist in decision making, regarding crop and irrigation management, for an irrigated maize production system. Assuming a 10% yield break in the expected average maximum maize yield, it was defined as sowing window, the period from January 23 rd to March 6 th , with February 20 th as the best sowing date. Other sowing windows may be established according to the risk that the farmer would be willing to take.

identifying climatic factors that affect maize yield in Janauba, MG, Brazil, and quantify the degree of influence of climate elements by using crop yield data simulated with CSM-CERES-Maize model. The model was used to simulate maize yield sowed weekly throughout the year, under irrigated and rainfed conditions, from 1977 to 2008. Statistical analysis performed on simulated yield data indicated that the factors sowing date, year and irrigation (rainfed and irrigated) and their double interactions were significant at a 5% level. The water availability accounted for the greatest amount of total maize yield variation in the study region (61.9%), followed by sowing date and its second order interactions (26.2%). Under optimal water availability conditions (irrigated), the factors that most influence the yield of maize are, basically, the air temperature and solar radiation variations. This fact was evidenced by low productivity values found in years that the incident solar radiation was below the observed average.

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The goal of this study was to evaluate yield and net return of a maize crop fertilized with different rates of conventional mineral fertilizer and cattle manure. The CSM-CERES-Maize model was used to simulate the nitrogen (N) fertilization management scenarios. Twelve treatments were simulated as follows: T1, T2 and T3 were, rates of 90, 130 and 160 kg ha-1 of N as conventional fertilizer, respectively; T4a, T4b and T4c were 4.5 t ha-1 of air-dried cattle manure,

Current climate changes affect agricultural production. Crop management strategies can be used to mitigate these effects. This study was carried out to evaluate the use of crop and soil management strategies to mitigate the effects of future climate on maize yield in mesoregions of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The CSM-CERES-Maize model was used to simulate the effect of maize root system depth and of the amount of plant residue left on the soil surface by the previous crop in maize yield for different scenarios of change in precipitation and solar radiation. The decrease in rainfall volume reduced the average maize yield in some regions by more than 50%. The increase in solar radiation maize yield rise, while its reduction caused more than 20% yield drop in most regions. The management strategies evaluated have the potential to mitigate such effects.