By Blake Jackson
While grain sorghum yields soar in Missouri, reaching 170 bushels per acre in some areas, farmers hesitate to embrace this profitable crop due to limited market access. Mark Wieberg, coordinator of the MU Variety Trials Program, highlights the crucial factor of proximity: "We don't have any market to sell [sorghum] near central Missouri. You have to go west." Western Missouri farmers near Mooresville, with closer access to markets, readily plant more sorghum, demonstrating the significant impact of basis spreads.
For many farmers, revisiting sorghum requires research on top-performing hybrids. MU's vital role comes into play here. After a hiatus from 2016 due to declining participation, the university revived its public grain sorghum testing program in 2018.
This year, trials were conducted in four locations: Columbia, Portageville, Mooresville, and Mount Vernon. Results reveal promising yields, with Columbia leading the pack at 173.6 bushels per acre across 14 tested hybrids. Dyna-Gro GX22934 reigned supreme for the second year with an impressive 185.7 bushels per acre.
Mooresville, closer to markets, saw a high of 158.8 bushels per acre with Dyna-Gro M71GR91, while the overall plot average reached 142.6 bushels. Southwest Missouri, however, faced challenges, averaging 113 bushels per acre. The southeast location struggled even more, with yields ranging from 92 to 118 bushels.
Pest pressure also played a role, with sorghum midge impacting Portageville yields and sugarcane aphids ravaging southwest Missouri. Wieberg emphasizes the importance of variety-specific resistance: "In a nearby private trial, varieties without good aphid resistance saw yields plummet to the 20s, 30s, and 40s, while resistant ones thrived at 130 bushels per acre."
Despite the marketing hurdle, MU's revived testing program offers valuable insights for farmers considering sorghum. With research identifying high-yielding, pest-resistant varieties, and markets potentially expanding in the future, this crop could become a more viable option for Missouri farmers.
Photo Credit: istock-mailson-pignata
Categories: Missouri, Crops, Sorghum