Does anyone know anything about growing Sorghum?

[czechmate]

i am intending on having a go with 15 ha next spring, for combining for grain. I certainly can’t say it’s the most regular crop you see around these parts but certainly not unseen either.
I did grow bits of millet back in the uk and suppose it is much the same, actually I would go for millet but our Co op don’t really take millet but do take Sorghum.
Does anyone have any pointers/advice on here regarding this crop?

Tia.

 

[PuG]

Looking to grow Sorgho forage this year (I know its not grain!) if I can get permission regarding bio waiver. Going to try just over 6 acres of either piper or hybrid. From what I gather is making sure to plant when the soil temperature is up - im going to wait until after first cut then put it in end of April. Heavy dew will germinate.

Are you going to under sow with clover?

 

[hendrebc]

@Farmer Roy knows about sorghum.

 

[Farmer Roy]

I have planted a bit in my time
Very different environment though

But yes, soil temp needs to be at least 14 C & rising for good germination & quick emergence

Quite a different plant to millet

 

[PuG]

I have planted a bit in my time
Very different environment though

But yes, soil temp needs to be at least 14 C & rising for good germination & quick emergence

Quite a different plant to millet

Was yours for grain?

Trying to decide between Hybride Sorgho x Sudan grass or straight Sorgho fourrager - Piper, basically it bakes off here during the summer so I need a bulk crop for wilting to hay so has to be drought tolerant and multi cut. I figure if I can get a cut first from the field of its current lay of grass then I'm not risking it to much by discing, harrowing and drilling in the Sorgho to see what happens this year. Then perhaps mulch it back down for the soil.

 

[ollie989898]

Soil needs to be very warm- less tolerant of abuse than maize because there is way less background breeding.

Do not spray it with nicosulfuron!!!

 

[hendrebc]

Was yours for grain?

Trying to decide between Hybride Sorgho x Sudan grass or straight Sorgho fourrager - Piper, basically it bakes off here during the summer so I need a bulk crop for wilting to hay so has to be drought tolerant and multi cut. I figure if I can get a cut first from the field of its current lay of grass then I'm not risking it to much by discing, harrowing and drilling in the Sorgho to see what happens this year. Then perhaps mulch it back down for the soil.

Have a look at Joel salatin pasture cropping on YouTube. He does what you are thinking of doing with sorghum I think but he definitely uses Sudan grass. Uses it for grazing but no reason you couldn't use it for hay instead.

 

[Farmer Roy]

Was yours for grain?

Trying to decide between Hybride Sorgho x Sudan grass or straight Sorgho fourrager - Piper, basically it bakes off here during the summer so I need a bulk crop for wilting to hay so has to be drought tolerant and multi cut. I figure if I can get a cut first from the field of its current lay of grass then I'm not risking it to much by discing, harrowing and drilling in the Sorgho to see what happens this year. Then perhaps mulch it back down for the soil.

Grain sorghum is the major summer growing grain crop we have
Personally, it generally makes up between 30 & 50% of my arable area. Used mainly in cattle feed lots & chicken rations

Forage sorghums & various Sudan / Sorghum crosses are very popular for summer / autumn grazing & haymaking

Sorghum is actually a very drought tolerant plant with an active root system & will re - tiller & keep growing as long as it has moisture & warmth.

But - we only really grow it on better heavier soils, under zero till, with a full profile of stored soil moisture.
Rough rule of thumb here is we wouldn't consider planting unless we had a metre of moisture ( which is why we zero till & retain stubble / ground cover, to conserve that moisture ). I wouldn't really consider it on shallow light ground that is prone to drying out, unless you are lucky enough to have reliable rainfall

 

[Dead Rabbits]

Sorghum, sorghum Sudan, Sudan, pearl millet, soybeans, cow peas, soybeans, buckwheat

 

[Farmer Roy]

Sorghum back in January - still had some potential even though it was planted in less than ideal moisture conditions, but desperate times . . .
Second pic is now, after the worst, hottest, driest summer on record, the heads were "cooked in the boot" which basically means the head was made sterile by heat & moisture stress even before it emerged from the stem. If this had rain on it now, it would send out new tillers & continue growing while it still had some warmth, before it gets a frost

One thing about sorghum for grazing or hay. If it gets stressed it can have high levels of nitrates & prussic Acid ( cyanide ) which can be toxic to ruminants. My drought struck pic tested at over 6 times the recommended amount for prussic Acid

I will say, sorghum is normally a very reliable & drought tolerant crop- so to me that pic really highlights how hard this summer has been.

 

[PuG]

Excellent pictures and information. Thanks.

I think no-till is the way to go but being bio im not sure if it would just get swamped with weeds.

View attachment 779778

Sorghum, sorghum Sudan, Sudan, pearl millet, soybeans, cow peas, soybeans, buckwheat

Very nice, do you drill or broad cast? sort of mix I would like to experiment with here. Do you put a winter cover crop in when the Sorghum is finished or only re-till come spring?

Originally I was just looking at adding green matter to our fields given there pretty worn out but I think its the way to go around here. At the moment you get one grass cut a year.

 

[PuG]

Drilled my Sorghum forage (hibrid Sorghum bicolor x sudanense) just over a month ago. Took a good two weeks to germinate and appear, though soil temperatures have been up and we had some light showers. Slightly concerned! its still only three / four inches tall and not very rapid considering they claim of 4ft in 60 days. Strange on some of the outer headlands the ground is stone and like concrete, plough barely touched the surface looks really good, each plant looks three times the size compared to the rest of the field. I don't know if its due to very shallow planting, the rest was about an 1", half deep. Some of the leafs look alittle diseased, lightly yellow discoloration and small holes on some.

Its growing, just seems well behind or my expectations were vastly too high.

Sounds normal?

 

[czechmate]

Oh, I didn’t realise this thread had any replies

Thanks for the Input. I lost my nerve and went for sunflowers

 

[PuG]

Just done my first cut. It seemed well behind on what I expected but the fields are worn out (partly why I'm growing it for a green manure). Bales are dense (getting on 600kg?), I should have put on more net (I usually have the baler set to 1 3/4 layers). Ended up wrapping given storms forecast over the weekend but wilting fast considering. Overall pleased, considering everything else here is baked and brown! it got to 4ft + on the best bits of the field. Doesn't like shadow at all along the wood line. 30kg h/a seed rate. So hopefully lets see how it recovers but im not going to cut again this year, only mulch after first frost. Then leave over winter, add compost, re-till in spring.

I used our front mower, it works, not the best ever but I know local farmer has a trailed finger mower with pick up reel parked up which I might inquire about next year. Raking wasn't so successful, I think I would use our Acrobat next time.

 

[ollie989898]

I think in some countries they direct cut it with a forager and disc header?

 

[PuG]

Not really viable here, but yes allot of them use a forager and chop.

 

[Derrick Hughes]

@som farmer

 

[Farmer Roy]

Last week

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Last week

View attachment 1114129View attachment 1114130

Is Sudan Grass Safer to Feed than Sorgum ?
Would it also be right to say that it could be more risky in the UK due to weather stresses increasing toxins if grazed fresh?

 

[PuG]

Water stress then it can be more of a problem - one way around it is to cut a strip and let it wilt in the field 24 hrs and strip graze that way. TBH last year we stripped grazed 6Ha's throughout the summer and we had no rain come May until October. Wasn't a problem grazing, (didn't mow) from about 1m to 2 meters in height. 1.64 Ha, lasted 22 heifers 1 month with buffer straw bale in the ring feeder. About 6 weeks re-growth.

Moha/Millet is also worth looking at.

I think if your grazing biggest danger is if the cattle brake down the fence and gorge themselves when its perhaps bit short of suffering.