Crops: Sorghum
Grain sorghum can
serve as a more drought tolerant crop than either corn or soybeans for
Mississippi producers. Thus, sorghum’s productivity potential
is relatively stable, compared to alternative crops, particularly when
grown on heavy clay or droughty soils. Furthermore, sorghum will
produce tremendous agronomic benefits when utilized in a crop rotation
system with soybeans or cotton. Sorghum, soybeans and cotton grown
in rotation systems consistently improve crop yields 10-20 percent compared
to continuous cropping systems. Crop rotations normally improve
yields because many weed, insect, nematode and disease problems build
up when growing the same crop and management system every year. Crop
rotation systems effectively eliminate many of these cumulative effects,
preventing problems, reducing inputs, raising yields and increasing profitability. Crop
rotation allows producers to solve predominant pest problems, including
diseases, weeds, nematodes and insects, by simply switching crops, rather
than implementing costly inputs.
Sorghum also produces substantial long-term crop rotation benefits by improving soil physical properties. Sorghum produces about three times more plant residue than cotton or soybeans. This plant debris is recycled into the soil as organic matter. Increasing soil organic matter improves soil-properties conducive to plant growth, including increasing the proportion of large soil aggregates, increasing soil-water infiltration and water holding capacity. Increasing soil organic matter content improves soil tilth and structure, which reduces soil crusting and water erosion, and increases soil-water infiltration and soil water and nutrient holding capacity. These soil physical improvements not only improve plant growth, but may also reduce environmental pollution by reducing runoff and erosion. These improvements also reduce the need for expensive annual deep tillage operations and irrigation.
Numerous other beneficial effects of crop rotation have been reported, including improvements in soil fertility, soil moisture, soil microbes, and phytotoxic compounds and/or growth promoting substances originating from crop residues. A crop rotation system also spreads risk in case of unpredictable crop-specific problems. Growers can maintain these benefits by continuing to rotate crops on a yearly basis.
However, since Roundup Ready technology is not available in sorghum, the common presence of adjacent Roundup Ready crops often generates off-target herbicide injury to sorghum fields. Furthermore, conventional herbicides available for sorghum weed control often do not adequately control some weeds well enough to grow sorghum profitably in many fields.
Frequently Asked Questions
What
are some good grain sorghum hybrids?
When
is the optimum time to plant grain sorghum?
What
is the optimum seeding rate for grain sorghum?
Which
crop is better suited: grain sorghum or corn?
When
should I irrigate grain sorghum?
Is
it legal to hunt ducks over milo?
What
are the growth stages for grain sorghum?
Publications
MSUcares
Grains publications
Weed
Control Guidelines - Sorghum
P1757 Insect
Management in Grain Sorghum
IS1331 Sorghum
Midge Control
Other Sorghum Information
Agronomy
Notes
2001
Grain Sorghum Variety Trial
The
National Sweet Sorghum Producers and Processors Association
Production
of Sweet Sorghum for Syrup in Kentucky
Processing
Sweet Sorghum for Syrup (University of Kentucky)
Sweet
Sorghum Culture and Syrup Production (Auburn University)
University of Arkansas Performance Tests
Grain
Sorghum Production Handbook (Kansas State University)
Sweet
Sorghum Seed Variety Descriptions
Sweet
Sorghum Seed Order Form
How
a Sorghum Plant Develops (Kansas State University)
Managing
Corn and Grain Sorghum Insect Pests (LSU)
