Sorghum bicolor

A fast-growing annual reaching 5 meters tall, hardy to UK zone 8. Flowers from August to October with seeds ripening September to October. Wind-pollinated hermaphroditic flowers. Tolerates light sandy, medium loamy, and heavy clay soils across mildly acidic to mildly alkaline pH ranges. Requires full sun and can handle both drought and moist conditions.

Description

A millet grass. A mature sorghum plant resembles maize. Plants vary in height from 45 cm to 4 m. It is an annual grass with erect solid stems. The stems can be 3 cm across at the base. Under the ground there is a widely branching extensive root system. Prop roots occur near the base. There are a range of different types of sorghum. Some have one main stem while others have many tillers. There are more tillers when plants are widely spaced. The nodes on the stem are slightly thickened. The distance between nodes is shortest near the base of the plant. Short eagerly kinds have 7 leaves while tall late varieties may have 24 leaves. The leaf blade can be 30-135 cm long. Leaves are bluish green and waxy. They have a prominent midrib. The large flower panicle can be 20-40 cm long. The flower occurs at the top of the plant. It can stick upright or bend over. The flower can be open or compact. There are several different varieties. Over 1000 cultivated varieties occur in China.

Edible Uses

The seed can be eaten raw or cooked — used whole like rice, popped like popcorn, or ground into a notably white flour for bread and other baked goods. Sorghum is a staple in some regions, where it is commonly fermented through lactic acid fermentation before eating. Sprouted seed can be eaten raw and added to salads. The germinated seed is also dried and ground into a malt powder used as a fermentation base for local beer production. The stems of sweet sorghum types are chewed like sugar cane, and in the United States a sweet syrup is pressed from them. The sap is also very sweet and can be eaten raw or made into syrup. Some caution is advised with stems, as there are reports that the leaves may contain cyanide. Nutritional content per 100g of dry seed (342 calories): water 12%, protein 10g, fat 3.7g, carbohydrate 72.7g, fibre 2.2g, ash 1.5g; calcium 22mg, phosphorus 242mg, iron 3.8mg, sodium 8mg, potassium 44mg; thiamine (B1) 0.33mg, riboflavin (B2) 0.18mg, niacin 3.9mg.

Traditional Uses

The seeds are eaten as a cereal. Flour is prepared then used for porridge or other dishes. It is used for dumplings, fried cakes and drinks. It cannot be used for bread as it contains no gluten. The stems of some kinds are sweet and are chewed. It is used for beer, and vinegar. The grains can be popped and eaten. The sprouted seeds are eaten.

Medicinal Uses

A decoction of the seed is demulcent and diuretic, used in treating kidney and urinary complaints. The inflorescence is astringent and haemostatic. Leaves and panicles are included in plant mixtures for decoctions treating anaemia. Decoctions of the twigs combined with lemon are used against jaundice. The red pigment is reported to have antimicrobial and antifungal properties and is used as a treatment for anaemia.

Known Hazards

The immature plant is poisonous, especially if slightly wilted, since it can contain the toxins hydrogen cyanide and the alkaloid hordenine. These substances are destroyed if the plant is dried or made into silage. In small quantities, hydrogen cyanide has been shown to stimulate respiration and improve digestion, it is also claimed to be of benefit in the treatment of cancer. In excess, however, it can cause respiratory failure and even death.

Distribution

A tropical plant. It suits the savannah zones in the tropics. It tolerates heat and drought. It can recover from drought even as a seedling. It can tolerate water-logging. It can be grown on heavy or light soils. Sorghum needs short daylengths to flower. Many kinds are adapted to specific daylength and rainfall patterns. It suits hardiness zones 9-12.

Where It Grows

Africa*, Angola, Arabia, Argentina, Asia, Australia, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Central America, Chad, China, Congo DR, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, East Africa, East Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Europe, Fiji, France, Georgia, Ghana, Guam, Guatemala, Guiana, Guianas, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Hungary, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Italy, Jamaica, Kenya, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mediterranean, Mexico, Middle East, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, North Africa, North America, Northeastern India, Pacific, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Philippines, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Russia, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, South Sudan, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tibet, Timor-Leste, Turkey, Türkiye, Uganda, United States, USA, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam, Virgin Islands, West Africa, West Indies, West Timor, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

Cultivation

Sorghum seeds will germinate soon after harvest. The seeds also store well if kept dry and protected from insects.

Propagation

Sow seed in April in a greenhouse, barely covering it. Germination should occur within 2 weeks at a minimum temperature of 23°C. Prick out seedlings into individual pots once large enough to handle, and plant out after the last expected frost. Consider providing cloche protection until the plants are growing strongly.

Other Uses

The flowering panicles — particularly from cultivars bred for the purpose — are made into brushes, brooms, and whisks. Several non-edible cultivars are grown specifically for the red pigment found in the leaf sheaths and sometimes adjacent stem tissue, used as a dye for mats, textiles, palm leaf strips, grasses used in basketry and weaving, ornamental calabashes, wool, body paint, and to colour cheese and cattle lick stones. A similar dye can be extracted from the grain refuse (glumes and grain wall) of red sorghum cultivars grown for food or beer. Traditionally, red sorghum dyes were used in funeral hangings decorated with patterned thick threads woven into the weft, known as 'ifala'. Sorghum also provides the violet colours on masks worn during certain dances. Combined with mud, sorghum and other tannin-rich dyes create the patterns on painted cloths from the Korhogo region. The dye is extracted by pressing out the juice, which is then fermented; used with tin- or chrome-mordanted wool or silk, it produces a colourfast red-brown. The use of sorghum dye in hair-dyeing products has been patented. Sorghum flour produces an adhesive used in plywood manufacture. Stems are used for weaving fences, mats, and wattle houses, as well as for roofing and fuel. The plant is an excellent biomass source, and stems can be used to produce fibreboard — Danish scientists have made quality panelling from sorghum stem chips.

Production

Grain is ready for harvest 4-8 weeks after flowering.

Other Information

One of the most important cereals of the semi-arid tropics. It is the most important native African cereal. It is cultivated on 50 million hectares in Africa.

Nutrition

Synonyms

Also Known As

Abantoko, Abokoun, Amabele, Amapemba, Bambaram-basso, Basse-bassi, Batar ainaruk, Beniyhah, Broomcorn, Buadoti, Cantel, Chidomba, Chipira, Daello, Dawa, Durra, Egyptian corn, Feterita, Forage sorghum, Gonkho, Grain sorghum, Great millet, Guinea corn, Hamo, Hnan-pyaung, Indian millet, iPwa, Jagung catel, Jerusalem corn, Jowar, Junelo, Kaffir-corn, Kala-lettok, Kala-pyaung, Kun-pyaung-pyu, Mabele, Mapemba, Mapila, Masasi mantidi, Midjo-cabal, Milho-cavalo, Milo, M'la, Mosong, Nahmo, Namuve, Nhame-quinto, Ntidi, Oka baba, Oka kpikpa, Pampas rice, Quinterim, Rice corn, Saccoline-pyaung, San-pyaung, Sooya, Supurge dansi, Susu, Thidok-lettok, Tiyooti, Waythali-mya-mahlaing, Waythali-thigye

References (83)

• Abbiw, D.K., 1990, Useful Plants of Ghana. West African uses of wild and cultivated plants. Intermediate Technology Publications and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. p 25
• Addis, G., et al, 2005, Ethnobotanical Study of Edible Wild Plants in Some Selected Districts of Ethiopia. Human Ecology, Vol. 33, No. 1, pp. 83-118
• Al-Sodany, Y. M., et al, 2013, Medicinal Plants in Saudi Arabia: I. Sarrwat Mountains at Taif, KSA. Academic Journal of Plant Sciences 6 (4): 134-145
• Ambasta, S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 587 (Also as Andropogon sorghum, Sorghum caffrorum, Sorghum caudatum, Sorghum cernuum, Sorghum conspicuum, Sorghum durra, Sorghum gambiense, Sorghum guineense, Sorghum membranaceum, Sorghum subglabrescens,
• Anderson, E. F., 1993, Plants and people of the Golden Triangle. Dioscorides Press. p 221

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