We studied the effects of temperature and solar radiation on rice yield with the aim of understanding the temperature and solar radiation requirements for high yield rice production in the lower reaches of the Huai River, China. Field experiments were conducted with two medium-maturing japonica rice (MMJR) varieties and four late-maturing japonica rice (LMJR) varieties in 2017 and 2018. Seeds were sown on May 10 (T1), May 17 (T2), May 24 (T3), May 31 (T4), June 7 (T5), June 14 (T6), and June 21 (T7). The whole growth duration (WGD) of rice was shortened when sowing date was delayed, especially for the duration from sowing to heading (S–H). The effective accumulated temperature (EAT), mean daily temperature (T_mean), cumulative solar radiation (CSR), and mean daily solar radiation (R_mean) over the WGD decreased when sowing date was delayed. Compared with T1, yields in T2, T3, T4, T5, T6, and T7 decreased by 0.12–0.35, 0.45–0.89, 0.74–1.56, 1.41–2.24, 2.16–2.90, and 2.69–3.64 t ha⁻¹, respectively. There was a significant positive correlation between rice yield and EAT in different growth stages. Temperature was the main factor that affected the yield of good eating-quality rice in the lower reaches of the Huai River. We found that a relatively high yield can be obtained when the optimal T_mean for medium-maturing japonica rice (MMJR) and late-maturing japonica rice (LMJR) was 25.8–27.0°C and 26.6–27.1°C in the stages from sowing to heading (S–H), and 20.3–23.3°C and 20.3–22.1°C in the stages from heading to maturity (H–M), respectively. The optimal sowing dates for MMJR and LMJR in the lower reaches of the Huai River were May 15–31 and May 15–18, respectively.