Abstract: In order to investigate the effects of water stress and supplement during the period from sowing to seedling emergence on the emergence rates of maize,the amount and time of water supplying after sowing and soil relative water content on sowing date (w_sowing) were analyzed based on pot experiment under different water supplying schemes.The results show that the emergence rate decreases with decreases of the soil moisture,the duration of drought prolonging and the amount of water supplying reducing.Under the condition without water supplement after sowing,the emergence rates of maize are 100%,77.8% to 66.7% and 0% corresponding to soil moisture from 70% to 60%,55% to 50% and 45% to 30%,respectively.Whereas,when w_sowing ranges from 35% to 45% with water supplying of 20 mm for 5 to 20 days after drought,the emergence rates ranges from 66.7% to 100%.But if the water supplying drops to 10 mm,the emergence rates drop to 0 to 77.8%.When w_sowing ranges from 35% to 45%,in order to ensure the ideal emergence rate,water supply must be conducted within 10-20 days and their amounts increase with soil moistures decreasing.The research can be used as references for determining the latest time and the minimal amount of water supplying in the areas where maize often suffer spring drought.