In this study,Zhongzao 39,Zhuliangyou 189,Hyou 518 and Taiyou 390 four rice cultivars were used to explore the effects of increased seedling age on the seedling quality,tillering rate,panicle-bearing tiller rate,biomass,and seed yield attributes with a low seeding rate grown under machine-transplanted conditions.The results showed that compared to 20-day-old(15)rice seedlings with a conventional seeding rate,rice seedlings with a low seeding rate showed a significantly increased grain yield at higher seedling ages(5~10 d).In seedlings with a low seeding rate,the average number of spikelets per panicle was 18.9%higher in 25-day-old early rice and 15.9%higher in 20-day-old late rice compared to seedlings with a conventional seeding rate.There was no significant difference in panicles per square meter between the seedlings with a low seeding rate and the seedlings with a conventional seeding rate.In the low seeding rate plants,an increased seedling age(5~10 d)resulted in higher seedling quality and higher tillering and panicle-bearing tiller rates.Our results suggested that the prolonged aging of the seedlings with a low seeding rate compensated for the negative influence of delayed transplantation under machine-transplanted conditions.
