Lecture No.

4
SORGHUM -Sorghum bicolor (L) Moench (2n = 20)
(Great millet / Indian millet / Milo / Cholam/ Jola / Jowar)
Sorghum is the fourth important world cereal, following wheat, rice
and maize. It is the staple food in the drier parts of tropical Africa,
India and China. The threshed grain is ground into a wholemeal
flour, and used for making thin porridge or a thick paste or dough by
boiling in water.

SYSTEMATIC POSITION :
Division : Phanerogams
Sub - Division : Anageosperms
Class : Monocotyledon
Series : Glumacea
Sub class : Glumiflorae
Family : Poaceae
Sub family : Poaideae
Tribe : Andropoganae
Sub tribe : Sorgasturm

ORIGIN :
Place of origin : Africa in the primary centre. India is the
secondary centre of origin.
Distribution : India, Africa, China, Iran, Japan, Korea, USA,
Australia.
In India : Maharastra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh,
Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan.
Sorghum bicolor (2n = 20)
Origin : Africa
Progenitor of sorghum
1. S.arundinaceum
2. S.verticilliflorum
3. S.sudanense
 4. S.aethiopicum
Classification :
Right from 16th century there were number of classification for the genus
sorghum. The famous among them is Snowden’s classification (1936) later refined by
Garber (1950) and by Dogget (1970).

The latest classification was done by Harlan and De Wet (1972).

Fig.1. Five basic races of sorghum based on coverage of glumes

1.Bicolor (B): Grain elongate, glumes clasping the grain which may be completely
covered or ¼ exposed.
2.Guinea (G): Grains flattened dorso-ventrally. Gap at maturity, glume long
3.Caudatum(C): grains asymmetrical, side next to lower glume flat or somewhat
concave, opposite side round and bulging. Persistent style at the tip of a beak pointing
towards the lower glume. glumes 1/2 the length of the grain.
4.Kaffir (K): Grains symmetrical (spherical), glumes clasping in varying length.
5.Durra (D): Grains rounded obovate, wedge shaped at the base and broadest slightly
above the middle; glumes very wide.

According to them, the cultivated sorghum Sorghum bicolor is divided in to five

basic races based the coverage of glume on the grain (Fig 1).
Hybrid races :
This consists of all combinations of the basic races.
1.Guniea bicolor (GB) 6.Guinea kaffir (GK)
2.Caudatum bicolor (CB) 7.Guinea durra (GD)
3.Kaffir bicolor (KB) 8.Kaffir caudatum (KC)
4.Durra bicolor (DB) 9.Kaffir durra (KD)
5.Guinea caudatum (GC) 10.Durra caudatum (DC)

Wild Sorghum sp. of Tamil Nadu:

S.halapense : Both 2n = 20 and 2n = 40 forms are available utilized for forage
sorghum improvement.
S.sudanense : Utilized for improvement of forage sorghum.
S.nitidum : Found in Kodai Hills. Processes shoot fly resistance and dormancy.
S.staffii : Found in Southern districts, used for inducing dormancy.

Cultivated sorghum
Grouped in to two a) Tall, tropical late maturing adapted to short day length photo
sensitive, longer internodes. E.g. Land races.
Land races of sorghum
11. Peria manjal cholam -
22. China manjal cholam -
33. Sen cholam
44. Talaivirichan cholam
55. Vellai cholam
66. Irungu cholam
77. Makkattai

b) Temperate, dwarf plant adapted to longer day length, photo in sensitive, shorter
internodes, long panicles, high yielding varieties.

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION :
Whole grain Fresh plant
(fodder)
Water 8-16% 78-86%
Protein 8-15% 12%
Carbohydrate 70-74% 40-50%
Fibre 1-3% 20-30%
Fat 2-3% -
Ash 1.5-2% -

SORGHUM POISONING
The aerial shoot of sorghum contain the cynogenic glycoside dhurrin,
which by enzyme action hydrolizes to give hyrocyanic acid, (HCN). As
little as 0.5g HCN is sufficient to kill a cow. Nitrogenous manuring
increase HCN content. The poison is destroyed when the fodder is
made into hay. HCN is more in dry land sorghum. It gets reduced after
flowering.

USES:
 Flour of sorghum is used for making porridge, biscuits or
unleavened bread. Propsorghums with horny endosperm used for
popcorn making. Sorghum is also widely used for brewing beer which is
a valuable dietary supplement because of its high vitamin B content.
Sorghum with sweet stems containing up to 10 per cent sucrose, are
used for chewing and manufacture of syrup. Sugar varieties containing
18 per cent Total Soluble Sugar (TSS), the juice is extracted, sterilized,
fermented with yeast for 48 hrs. Distillation is done and 45% ethanol
extracted. The grain is also used as valuable stock feed. Fodder
sorghum principally used as fodder, hay and silage making.

PEARLMILLET - Pennisetum glaucum L. (2n = 14)

(Bulrush millet / Spiked millet / Cat-tail millet / Cumbu / Sajja /
Bajra )
Pearl millet is the staple food in the drier parts of Tropical Africa
and in India, where it is the fourth most important cereal after rice,
sorghum and wheat. The grains are also fed to poultry and other
livestock. The green plants provide a useful fodder and it is sometimes
grown for this purpose. It also plays a major role in fodder
improvement by crossing with Napier grass.

SYSTEMATIC POSITION :
Division : Phanerogams
Sub – Division: Anageosperms
Class : Monocotyledon
Series : Glumacea
Sub class : Glumiflorae
Family : Poaceae
Tribe : Paniceae

ORIGIN :
Place of origin :Africa
Distribution :Africa India, Pakistan, Bangladesh,
In India :Uttar pradesh, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu,
Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharastra,

CLASSIFICATION:
SECTIONS
The genus Pennisetum is having more than 140 species. Stapf (1954) has divided
the genus pennisetum in to five sections viz.,
1. Gymnothrix
2. Eupennisetum
3. Penicillaria
4. Heterostachya
5. Brevivalvula
The cultivated Pennisetum glaucum belongs to the section Penicillaria.
Origin and putative parents.
Stapf included 32 species is Penicillaria. Of these 32 species found in Africa, six
annuals are considered wild and probable ancestors of the cultivated one. Pearl millet
is a product of multiple domestication. They are
1. Pennisetum perottettii
2. P. molllissimum
3. P. violaceum
4. P. versicolor
5. P. adonense
6. P. gymnothrix
The cultivated species of Pennisetum is believed to have originated thro’ hybridization
with in these six species.

Wild species utilised in breeding :

The other species in this section is P.purpureum a rhizomatus perennial having
chromosome number 2n = 28
cumbu napier hybrid = BN1
Tetraploid x Diploid - Triploid.
P. squamulatum (2n = 46) - Drought and cold resistant having apomictic line crossed with
P.glaucum to evolve superior cold resistant fodder.
P. orientale : used for transferring apomixis.
P. setaceum and P. violaceum : To transfer male sterile genes to P.glaucum
Inter generic crosses :
Buffel grass, Cenchrus ciliaris or Pennisetum ciliare utilised to cross with cumbu for
fodder improvement
CHARACTERISTICS FEATURES OF BAJRA :
1. Spikelet subtended by involucre of bristles.
2. Lodicules are absent (flower opening does not occur, only
androecium and
gynoecium protrude out).
3. Pennicillate anthers (anther tip cilliated - charecteristic of the genus
Pennisetum)
4. Fused style with bifid stigma.
5. Protogynous nature.
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF GRAIN :
Water - 12%
Carbohydrate - 67%
Protein - 11%
Fat - 5%
Fibre - 1.2%
Ash - 2.7%

USES:
Flour - Preparation of cakes or unleavened bread
Grain - Malted seed is an important source of beer. Feed for poultry and
other livestock
Green plant - Fodder
Straw - Feed for livestock, bedding, thatching, fencing and fuel