Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 279, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 November 1916 — SORGHUM VARIETIES FOR GREAT PLAINS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

SORGHUM VARIETIES FOR GREAT PLAINS

(Prepared by the United States Department of Agriculture.) After tests for several seasons, the United States department of agriculture is recommending four new varieties of sorghum for trial in the central and southern Great Plains area. Tha varieties have resulted from the plant introduction and breeding work of the department. They are described in Bulletin 383 recently Issued by the department. Dwarf hegari is primarily a grain sorghum, but like Blackhull kafir it is valuable also a forage plant. In general appearance it is intermediate between Blackhull kafir and feterita. It is almost, if not quite, as early in maturity as feterita, and at the Chillicothe (Texas) field station, where it has been under test for five years, it has produced better seed crops than any other variety of sorghum, and has become quite popular with the farmers in that locality. Many farmers prefer it to Dwarf milo on account of its higher forage value and the greater ease of harvesting, due to the erect heads. Improved Feterita. Improved feterita ls~a late Importation of this variety of sorghum, having been obtained from Africa in 1908, two years after the first successful importation of feterita. It has been selected for uniformity and leafiness, and shows a higher yielding power than the earlier importation. Dwarf feterita originated from a plant whicirwas only two anti one-half feet high and two' weeks earlier in maturity than the general crop of feterita. It has not fully retained either its dwarfness or its earliness, but has made consistently high yields of grain and appears to be of some value where an early maturing graih crop is desired. White milo is a variety of sorghum which has been grown to small extent throughout Oklahoma and Texas for a number of years. A dwarf strain of

this variety has been obtained by the department, which very much resembles the ordinary Dwarf Yellow mijo. White milo has given evidence of greater drought resistance than even the ordinary Dwarf milo and feterita. ' Tests at Chillicothe. These four varieties of sorghum were grown in field tests at the Chillicothe (Texas) field station for the years, 1913, 1914, and 1915. Dwarf hegari made the highest average yield of both fodder and grain for this period, with Dwarf feterita second in grain yield, but lower in yield of fodder. At Amarillo, Tex., for the same period Dwarf feterita gave the highest grain yield, with Improved feterita second in grain yield and only surpassed by Blackhull kafir in the amount of fodder produced. At Hays, Kan., for the two year 1914 and 1915, White milo gave the highest grain yield and a fodder yield about equal to that of Dwarf hegari. The grain yield of White milo was about ten bushels greater per acre than that of the ordinary Dwarf milo. It was, found possible at Chillicothe (Texas) to obtain two grain crops in one year from Dwarf hegari and the two feteritas. The Dwarf milo, however, produced only one cutting. Purpose of Bulletin. The purpose of the bulletin is not to urge the general adoption of these new varieties in preference present standard varieties of the Great Plains. It is intended to serve as a source of information in regard to these varieties at a time when they are being sent out for trial among the farmers, and it is believed that one pr more of them Is apt to fill the needs of certain limited localities and become of considerable importance within the next ten years. This bulletin, “New Sorghum Varieties for the Central and Southern Qreat Plains,” may be obtained from the department of agriculture as long as the supply for free distribution lasts.

ORDINARY BLACKHULL KAFIR AND DWARF FETERITA.

WHITE MILO, DWARF HEGARI, IMPROVED FETERITA, DWARF FETERITAAND SCHROCK KAFIR.