## 1 Introduction  
After wheat, maize (_Zan mays_ L.) is the second-most-produced crop within the European Union [1]. As for the Republic of Croatia, during the last decade (2010-2019), the average maize yield was 6.7 t ha\({}^{-1}\)[2], where the lowest yield was achieved in dry years (2011 = 5.7 t ha\({}^{-1}\) and 2012 = 5.3 t ha\({}^{-1}\)), while the highest yield was obtained in wet growing seasons in 2010 (7 t ha\({}^{-1}\)) and 2014 (8.1 t ha\({}^{-1}\)). It is important to emphasize that in the years with the highest maize yield, the amount of rainfall during the growing season was 68.4% (2010) and 42.2% (2014) higher than the long-term average (LTA, 1961-1990 = 368 mm). In the remaining years of the mentioned decade, the rainfall deficit was in the range from \(-\)33% (2011) to \(-\)13% (2017), whereby the lack of rainfall had to be compensated for using irrigation. Despite the considerable need, in the Republic of Croatia, only 1570 ha of agricultural land sown with maize is irrigated [3]. This data refers to the 2013-2017 period in Croatia, during which, maize was sown on 260818 ha, which indicates insufficient implementation of this agronomic practice. The analysis of irrigated maize production on a global scale was conducted by [PERSON] et al. [4]. An interesting study based on 162 publication results showed that maize grain yield (GY) was increased by 30.35% (7357 kg ha\({}^{-1}\) to 9512 kg ha\({}^{-1}\)) on average. In addition, the authors stated that the water productivity in irrigated maize production was increased by 9.91% (19.1 to 20.5 kg ha\({}^{-1}\) mm\({}^{-1}\)) and emphasize that these increases in maize yield and water productivity varied depending on the seasonal irrigation amounts, precipitation levels, annual average temperature, nitrogen application, soil organic matter, and bulk density. Another indicator of changing weather patterns is rising air temperature. Previous studies [5; 6; 7] have emphasized the negative impact of increasing air temperature on maize yields in different parts of the world. As far as Croatia is concerned, over the past decade, the deviation in air temperature from the LTA has been in the range of 0.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C (2014) to 2.57 \({}^{\circ}\)C (2018). These data refer to the growing period of summer crops, where the analysis of maize yield concerning drought and high air temperatures showed a greater association between maize yield and rainfall amount (drought) than high air temperatures. This statement is in agreement with [PERSON] and [PERSON] [8], who claimed that the major and consistent cause of rain-fed maize yield reductions in the humid and sub-humid US corn belt is the prolonged absence of significant rainfall and the resulting soil water deficit, i.e., not excessive air temperatures. Thus, a study conducted by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [9] emphasized the importance of air temperatures on maize GY and yield formation. The authors stated that heat stress results in a significant reduction in GY, which is associated with a reduction in kernel size. Furthermore, a follow-up study [10] was conducted on maize adaptation to heat treatment in a greenhouse experiment. The authors claimed that warmer temperatures accelerate the development rate, resulting in shorter vegetative and reproductive phases and that the maize GY is reduced under heat stress, mainly via pollen viability, which in turn, determines the kernel number. Further, the negative impact of waterlogging should not be neglected. Waterlogging comes as a result of heavy rainfall or extreme weather events, which are becoming more pronounced due to climate change. The stress caused by waterlogging inhibits crop growth because the water content in the soil is above the field capacity (FC); therefore, the air is expelled and, consequently, all pores are filled with water, leading to a lack of oxygen (hypoxia). If this condition lasts for a long time, the crop will be destroyed.