338 FIELD CROPS 



that not less than two million acres of sorghum are grown 

 in the United States every year. 



429. Culture. The methods of growing sorghum for 

 forage are not different from the methods of growing corn for 

 fodder or for silage, except that the sorghums are always 

 planted in drills rather than in hills. The crop grows well 

 on a wide range of soils, though it does best on those of more 

 than average fertility. The plant has a vigorous root system, 

 which enables it to use quick-acting fertilizers to good advan- 

 tage. 



The seed may be planted with the corn planter, using 

 special plates, or with the grain drill, using all or only a part 

 of the holes. When grown in rows and cultivated, the crop 

 is cut with the corn binder and handled in every way like 

 corn. When sown in close rows, the plants make a fine 

 growth which can be cured readily into hay. The rate of 

 seeding in rows wide apart is from 8 to 20 pounds to the acre; 

 when sown with a grain drill and not cultivated, 50 or 75 

 pounds of seed are required; while for broadcast seeding for 

 hay, as occasionally practiced, 75 to 100 pounds are neces- 

 sary. The more common method is to sow in wide drills 

 and cultivate like corn. The seed should not be planted till 

 after corn planting is finished, since it will germinate only 

 in warm weather. In some sections, cowpeas or soy beans 

 are planted with sorghum for hay or for silage, and millet 

 is occasionally sown with it for hay production. The 

 methods of handling for fodder and for silage are not dif- 

 ferent from those in common use with the corn crop. 



430. Uses. The principal use of sorghum is as a coarse 

 forage crop to take the place of corn in sections where the 

 climate is too dry for the successful production of that crop. 

 The yield of forage produced by sorghum in the South, even 

 where the rainfall is abundant, is usually larger than that 



