KUSHINGA PHIKELEL ANATIONAL FARMER TRAINING CENTER

Sorghum Production:
Course Outline
1.0 Introduction & Uses
2.0 Climatic Requirements
3.0 Soil and Seedbed Preparations
4.0 Varieties
5.0 Planting
6.0 Fertilisation
7.0 Weed Control
8.0 Pest Control
9.0 Harvesting
10.0 Storage
1.0 INTRODUCTION:
1.1 CLASSIFICATION
 Family Graminea
 Genus Sorghum
 Specie bicolor
 Botanical Name Sorghum bicolor
 Origin North East Africa (from Ethiopian highlands, Sudan and Chad)
 Common Names in Zimbabwe Mapfunde. Amabele
 Note: Sorghum is grown in Zimbabwe particularly in areas of low rainfall. Commonly found in south and
southeast part of the country.
Botany
 Sorghum is a coarse, annual grass and can ratoon in the tropics
 tillers develop an independent root system.
 loose to dense terminal panicle inflorescence
 95% self pollination
 tillering induced by low temperature during the 4-6-leaf stage
 soil fertility, light intensity, plant density, and soil moisture conditions influence tillering

1.2 TYPES OF SORGHUM:

 GRAIN SORGHUM: - Seed will thresh clean of the glumes.
 SORGO SORGHUM: - Grain is completely enclosed by the glum e.g. Sweet sorghum and their basic use
is in livestock feed and sugar production.
 GRASSY SORGHUM: - wild types used for breeding purpose.

1.3 USES OF SORGHUM:

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 Where sorghum is a staple food 80% of the grain produced is used for food preparations, and it is used in
form of:
 Thin and thick porridge
 Rice like products, which are cooked & mixed with Groundnut, Cow peas & Bambara nuts.
 Red sorghum is used by both small scale and commercial farmers for brewing beer & none alcoholic
beverages.
 Surplus malt is exported.
 Stover is used for livestock feed
 Sweet sorghum is extensively grown and eaten as fresh or dried.

1.4 ADAPTATION
 optimum temperature is 27oC and the minimum is 15oC
 tolerates both acidity and alkalinity (grows from pH 5.0-pH 8.5)
 grows from 0-2700m altitudes
 tolerates poorly drained soils (better than maize)
 rainfall requirement: 400 -700mm, tolerates short dry spells due to greater developmental plasticity.

1.5 ADVANTAGES OF SORGHUM OVER MAIZE:

 Sorghum is tolerance to drought due to the following morphological and physiological properties.
 Sorghum has greater developmental plasticity and is able to survive if conditions are not favourable.
 Sorghum shoots grow slowly until the root system is fully established.
 Sorghum plant produce twice as many secondary roots compared to maize, hence more nutrient and water
up take.
 Roots of sorghum are twice as much efficiency to nutrient and moisture uptake.
 Sorghum roots have silica deposits at the tip, which prevents the crown from collapsing during periods of
moisture stress.
 Sorghum leaf area is half that of maize therefore reduce water stress through evapour- transpiration.
 Sorghum leaves and stem is covered with wax material, which reduce water loss.
 Sorghum leaves roll-in during period of moisture stress and this reduces water loss.
 The stoma of sorghum is 30% smaller than that of maize.
 Sorghum requires 20% less water than maize to produce the same amount of dry matter.
 Maize stoma is completely damaged when subjected to wilting for a week or more where as those of
sorghum quickly recovers when subjected to wilting for two weeks.
1.6 PHYSIOLOGY OF THE CROP
1.6.0 GROWTH STAGES.
 have three growth stages namely
 GS 1 --> From sowing to panicle initiation.
 GS 2 --> Panicle initiation to flowering.
 GS 3 --> Flowering to physiological maturity.
1.6.1 GERMINATION:

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 for good germination one requires:
 Seed of good density, as deteriorated seed results in poor germination.
 Crop based or established from poor seed suffer from multiple defects of reduced plant numbers.
 Inferior emerged seedlings may be poor weed competitors.
 Seed quality has a major influence to stand establishment.
 Temp and moisture also affect germination and emergence.
 Note when SV 1 & 2 were released recommended seed rated were 5 kg/ha but in practice 40 kg/ha have
been used in order to achieve ideal / good stands.

1.6.2 LEAF AREA AND CANOPY DEVELOPMENT:

 Growth of the sorghum stand is relatively abrupt. The stem comprises of a very small part of the plant
until soon after the panicle initiation when it elongates rapidly into GS 2.
 Roots: The extent of and the depth of the root system vary with many factors i.e. both soil and crop
factors. Sorghum will root to a depth of 1.5 metres and laterally upto 2.7 metres.
 Tillering: Sorghum tiller from the base, although it can tiller from the nodes if the panicle is damaged.
 Agronomically tillering from the base is important. If tillers are formed early they give heads, which
mature almost at the same time with the main stem.
 Tillering is more prolific at low temperatures. In high temp. Areas it is unusual to find tillers with most
varieties.
 If the environmental is unfavourable there is competition biologically, inefficiency may result in some
tillers having no heads. Harvest index of tillers is lower than that of the main head.

3.0 Sorghum Production in Zimbabwe.

3.1 Production Trends in Zimbabwe:
 Prio to 1980 80% of sorghum came from large-scale commercial farmers and 20% from small-scale
farmers. The situation has changed with 90% of the total supply coming from smallholder farmers and
10% from the commercial areas. The bulk of the crop is from Matebeleland North. & South Masvingo
province.
 Prio to 1983 sorghum was not a controlled crop that there was no guaranteed price & market. Post
independence the crop became a controlled product by GMB.
 The occurrence of drought in 1992 to 1985 and 2002 - 2005 where maize failed resulted in sorghum
becoming a popular crop.

Limitations on expansion of the sorghum crop

Lack of interest in the crop has been largely due to:
 low yields of existing varieties i.e. large-scale sector 2.5 t/ha, and small-scale sector
0.7 t/ha.
 Bird damage.
 Labour intensive.
 Little investment in terms of research.

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 Lack of access to market.
 Nematodes problem in light textured soils.
 Effect of low pH as it is sensitive to all toxicity.
 Dehauling problems.

3.2 Management of the crop.

Climatic requirements
 Well adapted in areas with a summer rainfall of between 400 -700 mm.
 Crop is sensitive to frost.
 Germination is slow at low temperature lower than 18 degrees Celsius.
 Ideal temperatures are 25-35 degrees Celsius with a min base temperature of 15 degrees Celsius.
 Sorghum can withstand temperatures but at flowering may be detrimental.

Soil Management 
 Grows well on all types of soil.
 Light textured soils have problems of nematodes and low water holding capacity.
 Require deep soils well drained soils.
 pH should be in the range of 5 - 5.5.
 Also toxicity can be a problem & in such climate it can be replaced by pearl millet.
 Seedbed Preparation.
 Small seeded therefore requires fine seedbed to facilitate good seed soil contact.

4.0 Varieties
4.1 open pollinated varieties
 Sv 2
 Macia
 Red Swazi

4.2 hybrids 
DC75 and DC 99
 NS5511
Other Varieties
 NS SS11
 Segalave
 Mpofu.
 Scud
 Forage sorghum. Pan 888

5.0 Crop Establishment

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5.1 Methods of planting
 Widely differ varies from one part to another. Most common practise in planting dates varies widely from
early October to January. It's a short season crop therefore there is no need to plant it as early as maize.
 Broadcasting seed on ploughed land & it is covered by a light harrow or drag a branch.

5.2 Row planting

 Spacing interow ranges from 75 - 90 cm.
 Best stands are achieved when it's planted with a depth of 25 mm.
 Deeper planting is required if a pre-emergence herbicide is used.
5.3Time of planting
 Varies from October to November.
 Delayed planting reduces grain yield due to a decrease in grain number.
 good stand is a basic requirement for high yield.
5.4 Seed Rates
 Seed rates used by smallholders in dry areas can go upto 45 kg/ha.
 Rates used by farmers can be as high as 40 kg/ha.
 Seed rates of between 8 - 12 kg/ha
 Spacing trials in Zimbabwe started in 1950's initially recommendations were of high plant population
(i.e.) 300 x 250 mm.
 The above spacing has not been supported of late by research work due to recent hybrid varieties. Lower
plant population are being recommended 750 x 50 (commercial).
 In marginal areas more recent research work suggest a plant population of 33 000 (i.e. NR V) & for 111
& 1V between 60 000 - 100 000.
6.0 Fertilisation
 Most small-scale farmers do not apply fertilizer to sorghum & this is one of the major causes of low
yields because the soils are inherently low fertility.
 There is evidence that sorghum respond to both fertiliser and manure
 When water is limiting as is often the case in most sorghum growing areas, little response to fertiliser
may be expected.
 As a rule of thumb types and rates should be based on soil analysis results.
 N rates are 1/2 to 2/3 that of maize P 205 & K20 rates is similar to maize.
 Basal dressing - use compound D at rates that apply 1/3 of N requirements.

General Recommendations.

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 Nutrient status in soil
Nutrient Good Medium Poor
Kg/ha
N upto 75 75-100 100-125
P205 30-50 50-70 70-90
K20 20-30 30-50 50-70

 N top dressing should be applied 4-6 weeks post emergence.

7.0 Crop Rotation

 Sorghum is usually grown in a maize legume sorghum rotation. The idea is to prevent build up of pest
and diseases. It should not be grown continuously in rotation with maize. A break for at least two years is
required to avoid incidence of leaf blight downy mildew soot stripe & nematodes.
8.0 Weed Control
 Sensitive to weeds during emergence & establishment because it grows slowly.
 Weed control by smallholder farmers is often done late or not at all.
 Little work has been done on use of herbicide in sorghum.
 Use of atrazine has been advised only for soils with clay content in access of 25% & the rates are slightly
lower than those for maize.
9.0 Ratooning
 Unlike maize and pearl millet sorghum may re-grow following decapitation. The fundamental basis for
rationing is the ability of the plant converted to behave as a perennial & to continue beyond one fruiting
or harvesting cycle.
 Ratooning can be used to:
 Carry a crop from one year to the next for a couple of years without replanting.
 Allow multiple harvest from a single crop to be carried out throughout one year.
 Ensure maximum use of growing season that may be too short for two same crops.
Advantages of a Ratoon Crop
 Reduced costs of production.
 Reduce cycle of crop growth.
 Better utilisation of resources especially under bimodal.
 Translate to % yield per unit area in a given time period.
 If irrigation is used compared to main crop.
 Simple and easy method of crop production.

Disadvantages
 Ratoon decline in yield (lower yield than main crop) if irrigation is poor over time.

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  Build up of pest & diseases, which affect yield e.g. Ratoon stunting disease.
 Short growth duration has been attributed to 30-70% lower than the yield of the main crop.
 Introduction to more intensive irrigation.
10.0 Common Pest of Sorghum
 Stalk-boora (Bassiola fusca).
 Aphids (Phopalosiphum maidis).
 American bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera).
 Bird (Quelea guelea).
 Nematodes.
 stalk borer: especially Chilopartellus
 can be controlled with a contact insecticide as a spray or dust, 3-4 weeks after planting
 use either thiodan (endosulfan) or carbaryl
 a severe attack should be followed by a second application 8 weeks AP
 aphids: cause leaf damage and floral sterility
 use rogor (dimethioate) or metasystox for control (systemics) especially after head emergence and
before flowering if infestation is heavy
 monocrotophos may be phytotoxic to the crop so should not be used
 American bollworm: can cause considerable damage if attack occurs at the soft dough stage
 evidence of attack: chewed grain on the ground around the plant
 thiodan is recommended for control

Quelea quelea: (Birds)

Major pest of sorghum and it cause considerable damage in isolated fields, especially in a drought year
 bird scaring from grain fills to harvest
 white sorghums more susceptible because of the low tannin content making them more palatable
 Control of Quelea Birds
 Avoid isolated plants.
 Scaring birds
 White sorghum is more sensitive to bird damage. red sorghum has tannins and makes it more UN-
preferable by birds.
 Plant and harvest early.

DISEASES

 Leaf blight (Helmithosporium turcicum), use DC75 in areas with this problem
 Downy mildew (Sclerospora sorghi), sooty stripe (Ramulispora sorghi), covered smut (Sphacelotheca
sorghi) and charcoal rot (Macrophomina phaseoli)
 Leaf blight (Helmithosporium turcicum).
 No chemical control.
 Practical method is rotation & a break of two years is preferred.
 Prussic Acid Poisoning.

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 During the active growth phase a toxin durrhine is produced by the aerial parts of the plant & under the
influence of the digestive enzyme found in animals the substance undergoes hydrolysis to produce
hydrochloric acid.

 High amounts of prussic acid are found in

 Small plants in-mature leaves.
 Drought stricken crop.
 Freshly ratooned plants.
 Highly fertilised crop.
 Quantities produced vary accordingly to that of sorghum & growing conditions they also differ with
age of crop.
 Durrhine is destroyed when the plant is made into hay or silage.
11:0 Harvesting
 Must be done at right time to avoid losses due to birds, pests & diseases.
 Black layer to maintain is an important signal to the farmer that the crop has reached physiological
maturity & maximum weight. (Brown 1982)

11.1 Harvesting Methods

 Combine-harvest when seed will be mature & well hardened. Moisture content should be between 18-
20% & should be dried to 12% in storage.
11.2 Hand Harvesting
 Use sharp knives to cut the heads & put in baskets. Dry the heads in a crib or flat hard surface.
 After drying thresh either on a rock or on a hard floor smeared with cow dug.
 After threshing winnowing is done to remove chaff store at moisture content of between 9-11%.
11.3 GMB Grading Parameters
 Moisture content (% max)
 Test density (kg/hl min)
 Extraneous matter (% max)
 Broken/chipped (% max)
 Defective (% max)
 Unthreshed (% max)
 Other types (% max)
 Germination (% min)
 Infestation (no’s per kg)
 Live
 Dead

FINGER MILLET PRODUCTION

Classification
Family Graminaeae
Genus Elusine

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Species Corocana

Traditional Names
 Zviyo, Rukweza, Njera, Umpoko or Rapoko or finger millet
Description
 Annual tufted grass with a height of 25 cm to 120 cm.

Uses
 Grain is ground into flour and used for preparing sadza, thin porridge, brewing non alcaholic drinks
(Mahewu) and beer.
 Straw can be used for livestock feed

Advantages of Finger millet

 The grain can be stored for 4 – 5 year without being damaged by insect pest
 The crop suffer less from insect and bird damage
 More drought tolerant than maize
 Provides good soil cover
 Minimum disease and insect pest challenge from the field.

Problems or limitations of finger millet production

 Low market prices
 Low yield i.e. 390 kg /ha
 Lack of improved varieties
 Low research effort compared to other crops.

Major Production area

 Masvingo
 Midlands contribute about 80% of the production
 Manicaland

Climatic & soil requirement

 Require long growing season i.e. 5 months
 In drier area s it may take upto 4 months.
 Critical moisture requirement is at 10 weeks post emergence
 Reasonable yield can be obtained from soils of low fertility
 Ideal soils are medium sand to heavy textured soils.
 Finger millet does well on virgin soils
 Can thrive in acidic and water logged conditions.
Establishment of the crop
 Plant by broadcasting onto ploughed lands at a seed rate of 6 – 8 kg/ha
 Seed is covered by light harrow branch or driving animals
 Stand depends on planting depth, seed viability and fineness of land preparation
 Raw planting when preferred, one should use a spacing of 30 – 45 cm by continuous
 Transplanting has been found to result in increase in yield and stover than direct seeding.
Fertilizer application
 Usually no fertilizers are applied
 The crop response to applied nitrogen
 Rate is 100 ka N/ha

Cropping system
 Fits well after a legume
 Prone to striga spp (Witch Weed)

Weed Control
 Can not stand weed competition in the early stages of growth
 Common practice is hand hoeing
 Problem weed is Rapoko weed it is difficult to distinguish it from the crop
 The weed can be distinguished at 3 – 5 wks post emergence. It is dark green in color than the crop.
 Thinning and gap filling should be done in the first weeding.
 No herbicides have been used in finger millet production

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Harvesting
 Remove the heads with a knife or sharp blades
 Sun dry the crop and thresh the heads using sticks or driving animals or a tractor.

END OF COURSE

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