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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
I BULLETIN No. 383 
Contribution from the Bureau of Plant Industry ^&B 
WM. A. TAYLOR, Chief. J £2?' < $£fU 
Washington, D. C. A August 15, 1916 
NEW SORGHUM VARIETIES FOR THE CENTRAL 
AND SOUTHERN GREAT PLAINS. 
By H. N. Vinaix, Agronomist, and R. W. Edwards, Scientific Assistant, Office 
of Forage-Crop Investigations. 
CONTI 
Page. 
Introduction 1 
Description and adaptation of the new vari- 
]NTS. 
Page. 
Comparison of the field records of the new sor- 
ghum varieties 8 
Value of the varieties in different portions of 
the Great Plains 10 
Region adjacent to Chillicothe, Tex 10 
Region adjacent to Amarillo, Tex 12 
Region adjacent to Hays, Kans 12 
General conclusions 13 
White milo 6 
Schrock kafir 7 
INTRODUCTION. 
New varieties of sorghum are constantly appearing, and nearly 
every year one or more are exploited. In many instances these are 
well-known forms masquerading under new names, but there are 
also a large number which are truly different from those in common 
cultivation. One prolific source of these new sorghums is the cross- 
pollination which takes place naturally between different varieties. 
The sorghums being open fertilized and the pollen readily carried 
by the wind, there is abundant crossing between varieties whenever 
two kinds which are being groAvn in adjoining fields come into bloom 
at the same time. Occasionally, also, new strains are brought over 
from foreign countries by friends or relatives of residents of the 
United States. In addition to the varieties which arise in a more 
or less spontaneous manner, a large number have been introduced 
for trial through the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, 
and many are created in the breeding work of the United States 
Department of Agriculture and the State agricultural experiment 
stations. 
Among the resultant host of new forms, remarkably few are found 
of sufficient value to compete successfully with the best standard 
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