Soghurm

Site Selection

Sorghum is a cereal crop that can grow in a wide variety of soils ranging from heavy clay in the Southern Guinea savannah to sandy loam in the Sudan /Sahel savannah ecologies. It does best in soils with high moisture retention capacity, well drained and fertile clay loam in nature. It is fairly tolerant to alkalinity and salinity. It can tolerate some drought situations that is why It is described as a hardy crop. http://www.academia.edu/3617293/Sorghum_Production_Processing_Marketing_and_Utilization

 

RAINFED SORGHUM
Field Preparation 
Test the soil and apply fertilizers based on soil test recommendations.

i	Field has to be prepared well in advance taking advantage of early showers.
	FYM application should be done @ 12.5 t / ha and well incorporated at the time of ploughing.
ii.	Chiseling for soils with hard pan
	Chisel the soils having hard pan formation at shallow depths with chisel plough at 0.5 M interval, first in one direction and then in the direction perpendicular to the previous one once in three years. Apply 12.5 t FYM or composted Coir pith/ha besides chiseling to get an additional yield of about 30% over control.
iii.	To conserve the soil moisture sow the seeds in flat beds and form furrows between crop rows during inter cultivation or during third week after sowing.

http://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_tillage_landpreparation_sorghum.html

 

Climatic Requirements for Sorghum:

Sorghum can grow in a wide range of ecological conditions and can still yield well even under unfavourable conditions of drought stress and high temperatures. It is generally grown between 40⁰ North and 40⁰ South of the equator, in warm and hot countries characteristic of the semi-arid environment.

Sorghum requires warm conditions but it can be grown under a wide range of conditions.
It is also widely grown in temperate regions and at altitudes of up to 2300 m in the tropics.
It can tolerate high temperature throughout its life cycle better than any other crop.
Sorghum requires about 26-30⁰ C temperature for good growth. The minimum temperature for the germination of the sorghum seed is 7 to 10⁰ C.

Grain sorghum does not germinate and grow well under cool soil conditions. Poor emergence and seedling growth may result if planted before soil temperatures reach 35⁰ C. Sorghum is best adapted to areas having an average annual rainfall between 45 to 65 cm (17 to 25 inches).  Although sorghum can respond to good moisture supplies, it is nevertheless one of the toughest, drought tolerant crops available and this tends to maintain its popularity in the regions where the weather is very unpredictable.

The ability of sorghum to grow in drier environments is due to a number of physiological and morphological characteristics;

• Produces many roots compared to other cereals
• Has reduced leaf area thus reducing water loss through transpiration
• Can remain dormant during drought and resume growth when conditions are favourable
• Above ground parts of plant grow only after the root system is well established
• The leaves have a waxy coating and have the ability to roll in during drought thus effectively reducing transpiration
• Competes favourably with most weeds.

http://agropedia.iitk.ac.in/content/sorghum-production-practicessoilsclimatic-requirements-and-field-preperation

 

Soil temperatures

Aim for 15°C and rising. At 15°C sorghum takes 11-14 days to emerge. At 17°C it takes only 7-10 days. https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/plants/field-crops-and-pastures/broadacre-field-crops/sorghum/planting-information

 

 

Soils

The various soil types viz., vertisols, entisols, inceptisols or alfisols are suitable for growing sorghum. Vertisols with better cation exchange capacity, higher nutrient status and water retention support good crop. The crop is grown successfully on soil with pH ranging from 5.5 to 8.5. It tolerates salinity and alkalinity. Under good climatic conditions, sorghum does best on deep fertile soils. It is adapted to poor soils and can grow well on soils where many other crops would fail.

Climate

Sorghum is a warm season crop and withstands heat better than most other crops, but extremely high temperatures may reduce grain yield.

The crop is well suited to semi-arid condition http://www.ikisan.com/tn-sorghum-soils-and-climate.html

 

Choice of varieties:

There are three main ecologies with seasonal variations, these includethe Southern Guinea Savanna (SGS) with a long growing period of about seven to eight months of rainfall, the varieties to grow here should be long duration or late maturing varieties (Table 1). In the Northern Guinea Savannah, the growing season is shorter than in the Southern Guinea Savannah but longer than in Sudan/Sahel savannah. Varieties of sorghum to be grown here are medium maturing. The rainfall here last between six and seven months. In the Sudan/Sahel savannah, the growing period is short with the rainfall lasting between four and five months. Varieties of sorghum grown here are short duration or early maturing in order to escape the drought that is frequently experienced at the end of the growing season.

Nursery Preparation 
For raising seedlings to plant one hectare, select 7.5 cents (300 m2) near a water source where water will not stagnate.

Laying The Nursery 

• Provide three separate units of size 2 m x 1.5 m with 30 cm space in between the plots and all around the unit for irrigation.
• Excavate the soil from the inter-space and all around to a depth of 15 cm to form channels and spread the soil removed on the bed and level.

 

 

Main Field Preparation for Irrigated Crop

Ploughing 
Plough the field with an iron plough once (or) twice. Sorghum does not require fine tilth since it adversely affects germination and yield in the case of direct sown crop.

To overcome the subsoil hard pan in Alfisols (deep red soils) chiselling the field at 0.5 m intervals to a depth of 40 cm on both the directions of the field followed by disc ploughing once and cultivator ploughing twice help to increase the yield of sorghum and the succeeding blackgram also. This was true with Sorghum followed by Groundnut also.

Application of FYM and 100% of recommended N can also be followed. In soils with sub-soil hard pan, chiselling should be done every year at the start of the cropping sequence to create a favourable physical environment.

 

 

Formation of Ridges and Furrows 

• Form ridges and furrows using a ridger at 6 m long and 45 cm apart
• Form irrigation channels across the furrows

Alternatively, form beds of size 10 m2 and 20 m2 depending on the availability of water. http://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_tillage_landpreparation_sorghum.html

 

Planting

Sorghum requires a well tilled and prepared seed bed with a planting population of 3.0 to 7.0kg seed per hectare. Planting time usually varies from September to January, depending on the prevailing ecological conditions. NPK fertilizer are normally applied and provisions are made for irrigation and weeding. http://agriculturenigeria.com/farming-production/crop-production/crops/sorghum

 

Field/land preparation for Sweet Sorghum

For rainy season crop, with onset of rains in May-June, the field is ploughed once or twice to obtain a good tilt. Harrowing of soil should invariably follow after each ploughing to reduce the clod size. After the initial ploughing, the subsequent ploughings and harrowing are carried out when the moisture content of the clods are reduced. Field preparation depends on the system of sorghum sowing. Tropicultor is having a provision of attachment of different implements to a tool bar for field operations like ploughing, cultivator and blade harrow operation is done with changing the required implements. Similarly, operations like broad-bed formation (BBF) and ridge and furrow (R&F) land configurations with attachment of ridgers and chain

Three systems of sorghum sowing are followed

1. a) sowing on a flat surface
2. b) using ridge-and-furrow system
3. c) broad bed-and-furrow system.

 

Broad bed and furrow (BBF) is highly suitable for Vertisols whereas, flat sowing followed by opening of furrow in every row/alternate by ridger at inter-cultivation (20 DAS) is effective for Alfisol or lateritic soils under rain-fed situations or conservation furrows along with contour sowing.

If sowing is done on a flat surface, the land should be levelled after final ploughing using bullock-drawn or tractor-drawn levellers.

Ridges and furrows (Figure 2) is effective under irrigated conditions. In ridge and furrow system, ridges are made using either tractor or animal drawn ridge ploughs at 60-75 cm spacing. http://agropedia.iitk.ac.in/content/fieldland-preparation-sweet-sorghum

 

Spacing

Row spacing and plant population Sorghum is typically planted in 75 or 100 cm rows. However, no research on row spacing has been conducted in North-West Cambodia to confirm this. Wider row spacing and lower plant populations will reduce the risk of crop failure for post-monsoon season planting. The target plant population depends on the depth of soil moisture at planting and the expected growing conditions. Target populations should range between 30,000 and 60,000 plants/ha depending on rainfall and available soil water. The target population for postmonsoon season sowing should be around 30,000 plants/ha. When calculating planting rates, allow for an extra 20–25% for establishment losses when planting into a very good seedbed on heavy black soil using press wheels and 40–50% losses when seedbed conditions are fair or when press wheels are not used. Obtain the number of seeds per kilogram and the germination percentage from the bag. To determine the planting rate (kg seed/ha): Required number of plants/m2 × 10,000 Seeds/kg × germination % × establishment % Example calculation: 74 (target plant population/m2 ) × 10,000 =1.98 kg seed/ha 30,000 (seeds/kg) × 0.90 (germination %) × 0.75 (establishment %) 12 Crop establishment Apart from moisture stress, the major factors that usually significantly reduce yields are poor crop establishment, poor nutrition and weed competition. The following recommendations should help to improve crop establishment and yields. Uniform establishment and accurate depth placement of seed is essential. Precision planters achieve both of these. Planters should have tynes or discs mounted on parallelogram planter units so they independently adjust to uneven soil surfaces. Planter seed plates should be matched to seed size to ensure there are no misses or doubles/ triples on the plates. Narrow points or discs are better suited to no-till and minimum-till conditions, and work very well in free-flowing soils but excessive planting speeds will reduce establishment. The seed should be placed about 3–5 cm deep. Press wheels are essential, not only to improve establishment, but also to help control soil insect pests which attack germinating and emerging sorghum. Crop establishment is improved when the shape of the press wheel matches the shape of the seed trench http://aciar.gov.au/files/sorghum_169_lr.pdf

 

Fertilizer management

Application of 10 tons/ha FYM at the last ploughing, Nitrogen is mostly lacking for optimum Sorghum production. Nitrogen recommendations will vary with expected yield, soi l tex ture and cropping sequence. Approximately 80 kg of N (175 Kg Indorama Granular Urea) and 40 kg P O /hectare is 2 5 recommended. One half i.e 40 kg N and full P2O5 is to be applied at sowing, while remaining 40 kg N is to be applied 30-40 days after sowing. In case of light soils with low rainfall, 60kg N and 30kg P O is recommended. 2 5 Best Fertilizer Management Practices: Soil pH should be 5.7 or higher, A starter Fertilizer is an option, but is a must if planting no-till. Apply P and K according to soil test recommendations., For heavy clay soils, increase N by 20 to 30%, Splitting N is advisable; apply 1/3 at planting

 

Pest Management

Insect Pest Management

Shoot Fly and stem borer are the major insect pests occurring in all season. Important practice is to increase seed rate and destroy the dead heart seedl ings after removal. Furrow application of Carbofuran 3G @ 2 grams per row or spray Cypermethrin 10 EC @ 0.02% coinciding with Shoot y oviposition (7-14 days after germination) only for late sown crop.

Stem Borer (Chilo partellus) destroy thrashed Sorghum earheads before the onset of monsoon;

• use high seed rate and thin out the infected plants after 10-12 days of sowing;
• apply Endosulfan 4G/Carbonfurn 2 gm @ 8- 10 kg per ha. in plant rows at the 20th and 35th days after germination

Best Pest Management Practices

• Deep ploughing to expose the larval and pupal stages of shoot fly;
• Early sowing between last week of September to first week of October for escaping shoot fly incidence;
• High seed rate @ 10 to 12 kg ha/ha is recommended in case delay in sowing;
• Inter cropping of sorghum + safflower (2:1 ratio) in rainy season is recommended;
• Seed treatment with Imidacloprid @14 ml/kg of seed or alternatively Furadan / Carbofuran 50 SP@100 g/kg of seed is recommended;
• Soil application of Carbofuran 3G granules @ 20 kg ha‐1 in furrows at the time of sowing as prophylactic measure to control shoot pest is recommended;
• Releasing egg parasite, Trichogramma chilonis Ishii @ 12.5 lakh ha‐1 is recommended to reduce shooty incidence in rabi sorghum

http://www.indoramafertilizers.com/image/crop-practice-sorghum.pdf

 

Insect pest of sorghum and its management:

Sorghum Shoot fly: Atherigona soccata

Damage:

Damage occurs 1-4 weeks after seedling emergence. The damaged plants produce side tillers, which may also be attacked. The shoot fly’s entire life cycle is completed in 17-21 days. In India, shoot fly populations begin to increase in July, peak in August-September, and then decline. Infestations are especially high when sorghum planting is staggered due to erratic rainfall. Infestation is normally high in the post rainy-season crop, which is sown in September-October. Temperatures above 35^oC and below 18^oC reduce shoot fly survival.

 

 

Management:

Shoot fly infestation can be avoided by early sowing to avoid the active period of shoot fly population. If the sowings are completed within 7-10 days of the onset of the monsoon rains, the crop can escape from shoot fly infestation. In the rabi season, sowing between September end to October first week relatively reduces the shoot fly infestation. If early sowing could not be carried out, then use high seed rate. While thinning the crop, remove the seedlings with dead hearts and keep the optimum plant stand in the field.

• Early sowing – Low incidence.
• Late sowing –  High incidence
• Remove dead hearts
• High seed rate 8 – 12 kg/ha
• Seed treatment 60 % carbofuran 50% SP (100 gm/kg)
• Application of carbofuran 3 G, Phorate 10 G
• Disulfoton 5G @ 2g/m.row
• Spraying Carbaryl 0.2%,Dimethoate 0.03%
• Tall variety with yellow glossy stem less attacked.
• Use resistant variety IS-2205,IS- 3962,I-5469,IS-1054,s-386,SPV-102

 

Stem borer:  Chilo partyellus Swinehoe

Damage:

Subsequently, the larvae bore into the stem resulting in extensive tunnelling. The larvae also attack ear heads. Tunnelling of ear heads results either in its breakage, or complete or partial chaffy ear heads affecting grain development.

 

Management:

The stem borer survives during the off-season through the stubbles left in the field after harvest as well as in the stems kept for use as fodder. So, uprooting and burning of the stubbles and chopping of stems prevent its carry over to the next season. Select and grow varieties resistant to spotted stem borer. P-37, IS- 1054, BP-53,IS-2205,SPV-102.

• Spray Endosulfan 0.07 %, Carbryl 0.2 % after 1,1.5 and 2 months after sowing.

Or

• Whorl application of endosulfan 4G or Carbofuran 3G after 20,30,40 DAG @ 8 – 12 Kg/ha.
• Larval parasite Apentelis flavipes and egg parasite Trichogramma is effective.

 

Aphids: Rhopalosiphum maidis Fitch

Damage:

Females give birth to living young without mating and a generation can be completed in about a week. The insect is active throughout the winter. These aphids generally infest the whorl of sorghum plants. Their densities often decline as plants enter the boot and heading stage. Panicles may become heavily infested with corn leaf aphids while the grain is immature. Aphids also secrete a sugary solution called honeydew. A black fungus called sooty mold can grow on the honeydew. The fungus does not directly harm the plant but blocks sunlight from contaminated leaves and can discolor developing seeds. Large infestations can stunt and kill leaves and whole plants.

 

 

 

 

Management

Dimethoate 0.03%, neem seed kernal suspension 0.04%+soap.

Usually natural enemies such as lady beetles, Chrysopa, hover fly larvae, parasitic wasps and others will control aphid infestations.

 

Grain/Earhead Midge: Contarinia sorghicola Coq.

Damage:

The sorghum midge is one of the most damaging insects to sorghum. The adult is a tiny, fragile looking, reddish orange fly about 1 /16-inch long. Larvae are colourless at first, but dark orange when fully grown. Larvae developing inside sorghum flowers prevent seed formation, often resulting low grain yields.

 

 

Management:

• Larval parasite Tetrastichus  is Effective.
• Predator Anthocord bug,Orius,Ant(Tepinoma indicum)
• Carbaryl 10% dust @20 – 30 kg/ha at 50% flowering & grain formation.
• Malathion 0.05% or Phosalone 0.07% or Endosulphan 0.07%.
• Late sowing has less incidence.

 

Web Worm: Cryptoblabes gnidiella Mill

Damage:

Larva remains near the axis of inflorescence initially scrapping the leaf later on feeds on milky and hard grain. The larva web together adjacent grain with the help of silken threads. The whole ear head is completely webbed with excreta & silken threads

 

 

Management:

• Carbaryl 10% ,endosulfan 4% or Malathion 5% dust @ 20 – 25 kg/ha

 

Semi looper: Eublemma silicula Swinhoe

Damage:

Eublemma Larvae fed on maturing grains and concealed themselves under a small dome-shaped or elongated gallery made of anthers and silk. The quality of damaged grains deteriorated when exposed to rain. Populations of larvae of varied from 2 to 6 per earhead. A varietal influence was observed on the incidence. Late August to early September was the most active period for the pest.

Management:    

• Collection and destruction of egg masses and hand picking of larvae.
• Summer ploughing and poison baiting.
• Erection of light traps soon after the monsoon for 20-45 days and collecting and killing of adult moths are found very effective.
• Poision baite preparations 10 kg rice bran + 1 kg jaggery +1 liter quinolphos.
• Prepare small balls broad-cost in the fields preferably in the evening times.

http://www.krishisewa.com/articles/disease-management/65-dsorghum_pests.html

 

Harvesting

Harvest conditions

Grain sorghum is physiologically mature when moisture content drops to about 30%. At moistures higher than 25%, however, the seeds are too soft to withstand adequate threshing action, leading to either un-threshed heads or cracked seeds.

Sorghum dries rapidly in the Great Plains, often down to the 12% moisture level needed for safe storage. But, because of the danger of shatter loss and lodging from wind and rainstorms when moisture is under 20%, many western operators prefer to harvest early (20-25%) and dry artificially.

Early harvesting is also advisable in Indiana, but for a different reason. Our more humid conditions delay field drying and encourage mold development, even though shattering and lodging would be less likely than in the west.

 

Combine Heads and Gathering Units

Grain sorghum, if it is standing, can be combined with a regular grain header. It should be cut as high as possible without skipping too many heads. Cutter bar guard extensions are helpful if heads droop.

As with soybeans, reel bat speed should be only about 25% faster than ground speed to avoid shatter losses. The reel should be set high enough to avoid catching under the heads and throwing them over. Wider reel bats may be needed to prevent this.

Gathering losses in a standing crop are usually less at 2.5 to 3 mph, but this speed may overload the rack and shoe. In such a case, it is best to maintain this optimum speed but take a partial swath to prevent overloading.

If lodging is a problem, consider a row-crop attachment to help pick-up and intake of the crop. These fit in front of the grain header cutter bar and have gathering points, gathering chains and kicker wheels, somewhat like a forage harvester head. Vertical finger cylinders and spiral gathering cones are also used in row-crop attachments. Also, lodging is less severe at row spacing of 30 inches or less than at 38 to 40 inches, because adjacent plants are more likely to support the heads of broken stalks and keep them from settling to the ground.

 

Threshing — Cylinder and Concave Adjustments

Threshing action should be only enough to detach the seed from the heads. Cylinder speed is lower than for wheat, and some of the concave bars can sometimes be removed. Concave clearance should be about 1/2 inch in front and 1/8-3/16 inch at the rear in most cases. Follow your combine’s instruction manual. Worn cylinder or concave bars allowing excessive clearance at the centre of the cylinder should be replaced.

Sorghum stems often catch and choke the straw walkers, causing inconvenience and lost time in cleaning. Straw walker covers, which contain smaller holes to stop the stems but still pass the grain, are available for most combines.

Grain sorghum stalks are smaller and much wetter at harvest than corn stalks and are more likely to be chopped up and delivered into the grain tank. Pieces of stalk returned to the cylinder in the tailings will be chopped even finer. Therefore, keep the chaffer extension closed enough to prevent this, even at the expense of losing some grain. in fact, you may want to cover the chaffer extension with sheet metal to keep stalks out of the return.

Inspect the sieves often during the harvest operation to detect matting, since this will lead to excessive grain loss. The upper sieve should be set 1/2-2/3 open and the lower sieve 1/3-1/2 open. They should have just enough air to keep the layer 1alive and floating and not be overloaded by too high a ground speed.

 

 

Measuring Field Losses

Combining field losses of grain sorghum can be checked by the following. procedure. (This procedure is similar to that for soybeans described in “A Guide for Measuring Soybean Losses,” by D. M. Byg, Ohio State Extension Agricultural Engineer. To obtain a copy, contact your local county Extension Office.)

• Determine total lossby counting kernels in a 10 square foot area over the width of cut behind the machine. Approximately 17 kernels per square foot represents a loss of 1 bushel per acre.
• Determine pre-harvest lossby counting kernels on a 10 square foot area before the combine enters it.
• Determine gathering unit lossby backing the machine several feet and counting the kernels on a 10 square foot area across the width of cut in the stubble ahead of the cutter bar and subtracting the pre-harvest loss.
• Determine threshing and separation lossby subtracting pre-harvest and gathering unit losses from the total loss. (This procedure is similar to that for soybeans described in

If gathering unit losses exceed 8%, or threshing and separation losses exceed 2%, changes in adjustments and/or operating techniques should be made in an effort to reduce losses.

 

Drying

Removing Trash

Trash is a more severe problem in drying sorghum than in drying corn because the’ plant does not die until frost-killed. If sorghum is harvested before frost, there may be many pieces of green stems and leaves to contend with. In the dryer, this trash tends to float and collect in corners, thus causing a potential fire hazard and modifying air flow. Small pieces usually present more resistance to air flow and larger pieces, less resistance.

Cleaning sorghum may be desirable both before and after drying. Removing trash before the drying process will decrease the load on the dryer and allow for more uniform drying. However, “wet side” cleaning is difficult because the grain tends to be wet and sticky from the stem juices released during combining.

Cleaning sorghum is primarily a scalping operation to sieve out the large particles and trash rather than shifting out the fines from the seeds. If you use rotary screens, remember that the grain falls through the screen and the trash is retained. Since most cleaners are designed to retain the grain and drop the fines, you may need to re-orient the take-away conveyors to handle the large volume that falls through the screen.

 

Drying and Cooling Rates

An individual sorghum seed exposed to air flow will dry faster than a kernel of corn because it is smaller and the interior moisture can get out faster. But the greater flow resistance of a layer of sorghum in a bin reduces the quantity of air flow for a given static pressure. As a result, both the drying and cooling rates will be 2/3 to 3/4 that of corn for the same moisture content and drying equipment.

 

Fire Risk

Reports indicate that incidence of fire is greater when drying sorghum than when drying corn. One reason is that there is usually more trash with sorghum grain that can accumulate in pockets which stay in the dryer or block grain flow. Since this trash dries faster than the grain and may remain through several drying cycles, it can easily reach “tinder condition. Another reason for dryer fires is that an inexperienced operator, in order to compensate for sorghum’s slower drying rate, may increase the heat to hasten the drying process.

To minimize fire risk from igniting trash, the dryer, especially flow-through types such as batch or continuous flow units, should be inspected (at least once a day) to make sure all pockets of material are unloading. Continuous flow dryers may have to be emptied daily to permit inspection.

DO NOT leave fully automatic dryers running unattended for long periods of time. In fact, closely supervise all drying processes, especially if this is your first experience with sorghum drying.

Fuzz and fibrous dust tends to accumulate around and on motors, controls and equipment. This material collects moisture and can short-circuit motors and controls, or it may be ignited from normal arcing of the electric current when contacts open and close. Therefore, clean daily (preferably with compressed air) any dust accumulation on

(a) end bell housings on open electric motors

(b) switch and control boxes, and

(c) air intake screens on motors, radiators, filters and fans.

Many dryer fires apparently result from trash which is sucked into the intake, through the flame, then deposited, still glowing, in the plenum chamber and possibly in the grain mass. To prevent this, try to keep the ground clean around the air intake.

The intake may also be shielded to reduce ground pick-up. But remember

• do not restrict air flow by too fine a screen (1/4-inch mesh is adequate), by reduced intake area or by sharp corners;
• arrange the screen so that leaves and trash will drop away without blocking the air intake;
• be careful that overhead intakes do not pull in trash carried by wind gusts.

Recognize that trash can sift through and blow under false floors in bin dryers, making fire-hazard as great as with flow-through dryers. The low-air intake position of bin dryers presents an added trash pick-up hazard.

 

Drying Procedures

Any drying method used for shelled corn should also work for sorghum, subject to the limitations of lower air flow and, hence, capacity. Bin drying should be similar to corn if drying depths and layers are reduced 25 to 40%.

Corn and sorghum can be layered or mixed if the grain is to be used for livestock feed. Either can be placed on the bottom, but the overall-depth or layer thickness should be reduced to compensate for the added flow resistance of the sorghum portion of the total.

Drying air temperatures are essentially the same for sorghum as for corn, i.e.

• 110°F maximum for grain to be used for seed.
• 120°-140°F for non-stirred batch-in-bin feed-grain installations using air flows of 10-25 cfm/bu for 2-1/2 to 4-foot depths.
• 160°-200°F for feed grain in batch or continuous flow installations using air flows of 100-200 cfm/bu.
• Add 10°-20°F to outside air for deep layer drying with supplemental heat with timer or humidistat heat input control.

Procedures used for dry aeration, grain stirring and blending can be the same as for corn if allowance is made for the increased air flow resistance of sorghum.

Wet-Holding

Wet sorghum cannot be held as long as corn before spoiling and sprouting, although farmer experience in Indiana indicates that holding overnight is not as-dangerous-as we previously thought. The sorghum mass packs tighter, inhibiting air circulation, and thus the seeds are apparently quicker to germinate.

Present recommendations regarding holding wet sorghum are as follows:

• Be very cautious about holding for more than one day ahead of the dryer, especially in your first year of experience Also, be sure that allwet grain has been removed from the holding bin before refilling.
• Recognize that-conditions of 23-25% moisture and 80°-90°F grain;temperatures are ideal for heating, mold and sprouting. Safety margins are very narrow.
• Consider adding aeration of 1/2 cfm/bu to the wet holding tank. If nighttime temperatures drop 10°-20°F below daytime averages, aeration will be very beneficial. If they do not drop, however, very little cooling results other than that due to evaporation of grain moisture into the flowing air.

 

Storage

Wet sorghum can be ensiled like wet shelled corn. It is important, however, to get the grain under cover and sealed quickly than to compact it. Grinding or rolling prior to storage is popular (although not essential) because it aids air exclusion and is desirable prior to feeding.

Dry sorghum stores essentially the same as shelled corn. As mentioned above, it should be cleaned before storing. In addition, it should be mechanically spread or filled to distribute the fines and trash or the center withdrawn after filling to remove any concentration of fines.

A properly designed aeration system is essential for safe storage. Here are major considerations in the operation of such a system:

• Use 1/10 cfm/bu air flow.
• Cooling is the first consideration with humidity and moisture control secondary. Run the fan, regardless of weather conditions, whenever the grain is heating or over 22% moisture content.
• When the grain is below 22% moisture and not heating, run the fan whenever the outside air is 10°F cooler than the grain mass until the grain is cooled down to 40°-50°F.
• The increased air flow resistance of grain sorghum reduces aeration flow rates compared to corn. This may not be as critical as in drying, however, because of the low air flow rates and the greater latitude in aeration.

https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/AE/AE-82-w.html

 

 

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