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SORGHUM 



SORGHUM 



jstry, Bulletins Nos. 14, 20, 26 and 34, Experiments 

 in the Manufacture of Sugar from Sorghum. For 

 an interesting historical treatise, see "Sorgho, or 

 the Northern Sugar Plant," by Isaac A. Hedges, 

 Cincinnati, 1863 (204 pages, illustrated). 



Sorghum-growing. 



By C. W. Warburton. 



Sorghum is a drought-resistant crop largely 

 grown in the southern and southwestern United 

 States, and to some extent in other sections, for 

 forage and for the production of syrup. The for- 

 age is used as fodder, hay, silage, pasture or for 

 soiling. Sorghum out-yields the best varieties of 

 fodder corn in the South, and is generally con- 

 sidered superior to them for forage production. In 

 the corn-belt it is little grown as a forage crop, 

 but formerly was extensively used in the produc- 

 tion of syrup. The use of sorghum for this latter 

 purpose has rapidly decreased in the last few years 

 owing to the presence on the market of large 

 quantities of cheap glucose syrups, until now the 

 sorghum-syrup industry is an unimportant one. 



Culture. 



Soils. — Sorghum is not particular as to soils ; it 

 does well on any rich, well-drained land, but gives 

 best returns on sandy loams or clay loams. As 

 the crop is comparatively a surface feeder, it 

 responds readily to manuring. It has an extensive 

 root system, however, and produces fairly good 

 crops on poor land. Sorghum draws heavily on the 

 moisture and plant-food in the surface soil, and so 

 should not be followed by fall -sown crops. The 

 prevalent idea that this crop is " hard on the land " 

 is largely due to the bad physical condition in 

 which it leaves the soil. If the land is plowed in 

 the fall and put in good condition, the following 

 crop should not be materially lessened because of 

 the sorghum which preceded it. 



Fertilizers. — For the production of forage, barn- 

 yard manure and the use of leguminous fertilizers, 

 such as cowpeas, give best results. In semi-arid 

 sections the manure should be well distributed, as 

 large lumps will cause the soil to dry out very 

 rapidly, with consequent injury to the crop. If a 

 green-manuring crop is used, it should be plowed- 

 in some time before the sorghum is planted, in 

 order that the ground may become well settled and 

 in good condition to retain moisture. 



Preparation of the land.-^'No special preparation 

 is necessary for this crop other than that given for 

 corn. The land should be thoroughly plowed some 

 weeks before planting, preferably in the fall. A 

 few days before planting time it should be disked 

 and harrowed until the surface is fine and mellow. 

 The young plants grow very slowly, so that land 

 reasonably free from weed seed should be used, and 

 harrowing just before the seed is planted is desir- 

 able to kill any weeds which may have started. 



Varieties. — The best known varieties of the sac- 

 charine sorghums are Amber (Fig. 810), Orange 

 (Fig. 811) and Sumac (Fig. 812). Of these, Amber 

 is the earliest, and produces a fair amount of for- 



age . Orange and Sumac are later in maturing and 

 yield more heavily. All make good syrup. Amber 

 being most popular in the North, because of its 

 earliness. Sumac is most largely grown in the 

 Southwest, while Orange is the prevailing sort in 

 many sections in the southern and central states. 



Seeding. — When the crop is to be used for hay 

 or pasture the seed is sown either broadcast or 

 with a grain drill, using one-half to two bushels to 

 the acre. The larger quantity is used in the south- 

 ern states ; the smaller one in regions of light 



Fig. 814. Field ot soighum in shock, 



rainfall. If the seed is sown with a grain drill, all 

 or only a part of the holes may be used. For silage 

 and soiling, and for fodder and syrup as well, it is 

 customary to plant in rows three to four feet 

 apart, using special sorghum plates in a corn- or 

 cotton-planter, and planting six pounds to one-half 

 bushel of seed per acre. 



Cultivation. — When planted in rows, sorghum 

 should be cultivated the same as corn. One or two 

 harrowings lengthwise of the rows soon after 

 planting will aid in keeping down the weeds, and 

 this treatment should be continued until the plants 

 are large enough to enable the use of any of the 

 ordinary cultivators. After that time the crop 

 should be handled like corn. If the weeds have been 

 allowed to get a start, hoeing in the rows may be 

 necessary. If the seed is sown in drills, harrowing 

 a few days after seeding is often of benefit in 

 checking the growth of weeds. 



Harvesting. — For silage and fodder, and for 

 syrup, the sorghum should be cut when the seed is 

 in the dough stage. The silage will be much im- 

 proved, if cowpeas are grown and harvested with 

 the sorghum. For soiling, the crop may be cut at 

 any time it is needed, but can be cut most profit- 

 ably only after the plants begin to head. The fod- 

 der is usually cut with the corn-binder, shocked 

 and stacked, or fed from the shocks the same as 

 corn fodder. It is not usually advisable to stack 

 the fodder until early winter, as the stalks are 

 very succulent and are not thoroughly cured until 

 that time. An acre will produce three to six tons 

 of fodder or eight to twenty tons of green forage 

 or silage. 



When the seed has been sown broadcast or with 

 a grain drill, and the crop is to be used for hay, it 

 may be cut at any time after the heads have 

 appeared. The best quality of hay can usually be 

 obtained by cutting when the plants are just past 

 the blooming stage, or before the seed hardens. In 



