Study of the promising sweet sorghum varieties

Abstract

Abstract. Sweet sorghum in several large agricultural regions of the Russian Federation with unstable or insufficient moisture is becoming a real alternative to traditional feed grain crops. It has high adaptability and provides a stable green mass yield for silage. The purpose of the current work was to estimate and characterize promising sweet sorghum varieties developed by the ARC “Donskoy”. Methodology: the current study was carried out in the FSBSI “Agricultural Research Center “Donskoy” from 2020 to 2022. The soil of the experimental plot was ordinary calcareous heavy loamy blackearth (chernozem). The objects of research were 17 new varieties being studied in the nursery of the competitive variety testing. Scientific originality lies in the study of morphological, biochemical, and productive indicators of the new promising sweet sorghum varieties; in identifying among them the most adaptive ones to the conditions of insufficient (or unstable) moisture in the North Caucasus. Results. During the study there was found out that when selecting varieties according to economically valuable traits, it should be taken into account that the growing conditions have no effect only on a vegetation period and a number of leaves are practically, other traits can change significantly. According to green mass productivity, the most stable samples were ‘M’ (V = 2.7 %), ‘ZR-1/44’ (V = 7.3 %), ‘KL-12198/2’ (V = 8.2 %), ‘RS-124/ 19’ (V = 9.3 %), ‘Sakharnoe 105/3’ (V = 10.2 %). The analysis of quality and productivity indicators there were identified the new sweet sorghum varieties ‘Yuzhnoe’, ‘Amazanit 301’ and ‘Feniks’. The identified varieties have exceeded the standard one on 4–13 t/ha of green mass, on 2.9-–4.3 t/ha of dry matter, on 0.24–0.36 t/ha of digestible protein. The varieties ‘Feniks’ and ‘Yuzhnoe’, approved for use in the North Caucasus, the Central Blackearth and the Low-Volga regions of the Russian Federation, can be recommended for widespread introduction into agricultural production.