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bioweb.sungrant.org » Technical » Biomass Resources » Agricultural Resources » Existing Crops » Grain Sorghum

Grain Sorghum	Printer Friendly

Grain sorghum (Gramineae Sorghum bicolor L. Moench), also called milo, is currently produced in 18 states (figure 1), although production is most concentrated in the central and southern Plains states of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Acreage has been declining (table 1), and average national yields are typically 50 to 70 bushel/ac with lower yields in the southern Plains relative to the central Plains (USDA NASS). Grain sorghum is an efficient water user and is drought tolerant, particularly with respect to other agricultural crops and is often produced in dryer areas.                                        Grain sorghum is typically planted in rotation with either a fallow period or with soybeans or other small grains, mostly wheat (KSU, 1998). No-till planting is best suited to well-drained soils. Other reduced-till methods are more suitable for wetter soils (KSU, 1998). About 14% of grain sorghum acres are planted using no-till operations, about 18% use reduced-till methods, and the remaining acres use conventional till methods (CTIC, 2000).    Seeding rates are those sufficient to give the desired number of plants per area (usually between 30,000 and 100,000) and depend on row spacing used, moisture and temperature conditions, and likely germination rate of the seed. For a typical site in Kansas using a 30 inch row and a desired population of 45,000 plants/ac, about 69,000 seeds/ac are required. Seeds are planted at 1 to 2 inch depths depending on soil type. Grain sorghum is generally planted in May or June with planting timed so that flowering occurs prior to the hottest, driest part of the summer.   Fertilizer requirements depend on soil conditions and expected yields.  For example, recommended levels of nitrogen range from 0.8 to 2 lbs of elemental N/acre for every 100 lbs/ac expected grain yield (KSU, 1998; Stichler, 1997; Endres, 2000). Phosphorous and potassium recommendations depend on existing soil levels for these nutrients and range from 0 to 70 lbs P2O5/ac and 0 to 100 lbs K2O/ac. Zinc, iron, and sulfur may also be needed in small quantities in some cases (KSU, 1998; Stichler, 1997).   Grain sorghum is susceptible to a number of fungal, bacteria, and viral diseases although most do not typically cause serious losses.  Greenbugs and chinch bugs are important insect pests.   Harvest typically occurs 1 to 2 weeks after a killing frost (late September to October) using small grain combines. The grain is physiologically mature at 25 to 35% moisture, but needs to be below 20% moisture to harvest and 14% moisture is considered dry. Grain sorghum can be slow to dry in the field, and sometimes pre-harvest desiccation (i.e., killing the plant with herbicides) is used. Significant harvest losses can occur if the combines are not properly adjusted and operated at the appropriate speed. Long term storage usually requires that the moisture content be below 14%. Wet-grain storage sometimes occurs in either sealed, oxygen-free systems or in open unsealed bunker or trench silos (KSU, 1998).   Typical cash production costs ($1995) range from $98 to $120/ac and total economic costs range from $179 to $189/ac (USDA-ERS).   Grain sorghum is produced primarily as cattle feed and is also used in bird seed. However, about 15% of the crop is currently used to produce ethanol or other bioproducts. The process used to produce ethanol from grain sorghum is the same as the dry grind process used for corn grain and similarly, results in the production of distiller’s dried grains that are used for livestock feed (National Sorghum Producers).    Grain sorghum yields are expected to increase slightly in the coming years. The USDA projects average national sorghum grain yields of 69.0 bu/ac and 6.0 million harvested acres by 2015 (USDA OCE).  FAPRI projects average national sorghum grain yields of 67.2 bu/ac and 5.02 million harvested acres by 2015 (FAPRI, 2006). A workshop of crop experts (English, 1997) projected that under the mostly likely scenario, average national sorghum grain yields of 89 and 102 bu/ac could be achieved by 2030 and 2050 respectively (compared to 1990-1992 yields of 65 bushels/acre) resulting from genetic, management, and equipment improvements.

References
Conservation Technology Information Center, 2000. National Crop Residue Management Survey. West Lafayette, IN. Endres, Gregory and Duane Berlund, Grain Sorghum (Milo) Production Guidelines, North Dakota State University Extension, www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/carringt/agalerts/milo.htm. English, B.C., R.L. White, and L. Chuang, Crop and Livestock Technologies, RCA III Symposium, Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA, 1997. Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) (January 2006), FAPRI 2006 U.S. and world agricultural outlook, Iowa State University and the University of Missouri-Columbia, FAPRI Staff Report 06-FSR 1. Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, Grain Sorghum Production Handbook, C-687 (Revised), May 1998. National Sorghum Producers, www.sorghumgrowers.com. Stichler, Charles, Mark McFarland, and Cloyce Coffman, Irrigated and Dryland Grain Sorghum Production—South and Southwest Texas, Texas A&M University, Texas Agricultural Extension Service, 5M-5-97, AGR14. U.S.Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service, www.nass.usda.gov U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Farm Business Economic Indicator Updates: Costs of Production, FBEI 97-1, February, 1997. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Chief Economist, USDA agricultural baseline projects to 2015, Baseline Report OCE-2006-1, February 2006.