EVALUATION OF FORAGE SORGHUM HYBRIDS (SORGHUM BICOLOR (L.) MOENCH)
S. K. PAHUJA, S. ARYA, P. KUMARI AND R. PANCHTA
Forage Section, CCS Haryana Agriculture University
Hisar-125004 (Haryana), India
E-mail: hisar@sorghum.res.in
(Received : 07 February 2014; Accepted : 29 June 2014)
SUMMARY
Forage as a feed for livestock in emergency period has always been a dire need of the time. Hybrids production offers a solution to this problem. The objective of the present studies was to select the best parents and then utilized them in interspecific hybridization programme to produce hybrids that could provide palatable green fodder over longer period of time. The materials was sown in random block design and evaluated for some agronomic and forage quality traits. Field experiments were conducted during 2012 at Warangal to estimate overall performance of hybrids over the checks. Seventeen forage sorghum hybrids (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) and six checks (including two public and three commercial hybrids and (SSG 59-3) released variety) were tested at Warangal. Highly significant differences were found between the hybrids and checks for plant height, number of tillers, leaf length, leaf breadth, stem girth, number of leaves/plant, green and dry fodder yield (q/ha). Some of the locally developed hybrids significantly out yielded for both green and dry fodder yield as compared to introduced commercial ones. The hybrid 56A x COFS29 was unique in combining high forage yield with plant height, leaf length etc. therefore, expected to meet the farmer’s preference in producing high quantities of forage in a relatively short period of time and we can also use 56A male sterile line in future for further hybrid production programme. Along with that quality aspects are also very crucial in breeding for forage crops. Therefore, in future programs, screening for the nutritional value should be carried in the earlier stages of the breeding program.
Key words:Characterization, evaluation, fodder yield, quality, forage sorghum