SORGHUM. (-6T 



Improvement by Selection. 



Value of Selection and Acclimatisation, It would be difficult t<> find a 

 plant that will improve more as the result of selection and acclimatisation 

 than either IS1 il« > or Feteria. 



There were Bevera] objectionable characteristics in Milo when first grown. 

 Amongsl these were (1) goose-neck or pendent heads \ (2) free stooling ; (3) 

 free branching; and (I) absence of uniformity in height and size of the 

 plant. Goose-neck heads are very awkward to harvest, and also ripen more 

 unevenly owing to shading, than erect heads. Free stooling and branching 

 lead to irregular ripening of heads, as they do not all seed at the same time. 

 Absence of uniformity in size of plant renders harvesting difficult, and also 

 makes threshing awkward if the latter is done in the bundle. Now, as the 

 result of selection, the goose-neck or pendent heads have been entirely 

 eliminated in Milo and Feteria at the experiment farms, while free stooling 

 and absence of uniformity have been considerably lessened. Just as in the 

 case of maize, the farmer growing these sorghums can continually enhance 

 the value of his crop by paying attention to desirable characteristics and 

 selecting for the same. To avoid free stooling, the previous remarks con- 

 cerning wide spacing in the rows should be noted. 



Increase in Yield by Selection. — In selecting for increase in yield of grain, 

 compactness and fullness of head should be chosen. The tendency towards 

 u branching in the head should be severely discouraged. Milo heads will 

 often be found with branches at the base of the head, bearing none or little 

 seed. These should always be discarded. Plants bearing the largest, most 

 compact heads, should be chosen, due regard being paid to the desirability 

 of having the height and size of the plants as uniform as possible. 



Fungus Diseases of Sorghum. 



Red Stain (Fusarium sp.). 



In the coastal districts this disease is one of the most serious. Broom 

 millet is badly attacked, the disease affecting the node of the broom, making 

 it brittle, and some of the fodder sorghums are very liable to attack. Sudan 

 grass and Johnson grass are also attacked. The disease appears as broad, 

 reddish blotches on the leaf sheaths, and inside the stems of the plants as 

 reddish strands or as extensive reddish colorations of the vascular tissue. 

 The disease is known to be conveyed from plant to plant in the field. 

 Sometimes the inside of a leaf sheath which holds water, or has been 

 attacked by aphis, may be greatly reddened and diseased by this secondary 

 infection. The disease is also known to be conveyed by seed, and through 

 the soil by reason of the presence of old sorghum " trash " on which it can 

 live. 



The methods of control recommended are : — 



1 . Avoid a succession of sorghum or- broom millet crops in the same 



land by adopting some form of rotation. 



2. Use the cleanest seed procurable. No satisfactory seed treatment is 



known. 



3. Select the most resistant and vigorous plants available for seed 



purposes. While it is very difficult, if not impossible, to get seed 

 free from contamination, it is possible to greatly improve the type 

 of crop with respect to the disease by selecting the best plants in 

 the field. Saccaline, though not immune, resists the disease, and 

 other varieties are being tested. 



