Sorghum bicolor
| Sorghum bicolor | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 8 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 16' |
| Speed: | Fast |
| Blooms: | Late Summer-Mid Fall |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Sorghum bicolor (common name: sorghum)
Propagation: Seed - sow April in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 2 weeks if given a minimum germination temperature of 23°c[1]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots once they are large enough to handle and plant them out after the last expected frosts. Consider giving them some protection, such as a cloche, until they are growing away strongly.
Cultivation: A fairly easily grown plant, though it is on the edges of its climatic zone in Britain. It requires a warm, sheltered and sunny position[1], preferring a slightly to moderately acid soil[1][2], though some cultivars have succeeded with a pH as high as 8[2]. Plants are adapted to a wide range of soils varying from light loams to heavy clays, they thrive best on light, easily worked soils of high fertility, with moderate to high availablility of water[2]. Moderately well-drained soils are suitable for sorghums[2]. Small amounts of alkali in sand reduces performance considerably[2]. Plants are moderatley tolerant of saline soils[2]. Established plants are very drought resistant, they succeed in arid soils[3]. A nitrogen rich soil causes the plants to lodge[1]. Plants are reported to tolerate an annual precipitation in the range of 20 to 410cm, an annual temperature in the range of 7.8 to 27.8°C and a pH of 4.3 to 8.7[2].
Sorghum is widely cultivated in tropical and warm temperate zones for its edible seed, as well as for its panicles (which are used as brooms) and the syrup obtained from its sap. Yields of around 6 tonnes per hectare have been achieved, though yields as low as 200 kilos have been reported - yields below 2 tonnes are not considered financially viable[2].There are many named varieties[4][5][6][7]. Some cultivars are short-day plants and are unlikely to produce flowers and seed away from the tropical zone[2]. Plants are adapted to tropical and subtropical summer rainfall climates with rainfall from 25 - 125 cm annually, they are of little importance in more humid areas with higher rainfall[2]. It is grown in Britain as a tender bedding plant but requires a long hot summer if it is to ripen its seed here[8]. In warmer climates it takes 3 months from sowing to seed harvest[1].
Range: Original habitat is obscure.
Habitat: Not known in the wild.
Edibility: Seed - raw or cooked. It is used as a whole grain in similar ways to rice or can be ground into a flour and made into bread etc[9][4][10][11][7]. The ground seed yields a particularly white flour[12]. Sorghum is a staple food in some regions, where it is often fermented (lactic acid fermentation) before being eaten[7]. The sprouted seed can be eaten raw, and is sometimes added to salads[7].
Sap - raw or cooked. Very sweet, it is made into a syrup[13][9][14][10][15].
Stems - cooked[16]. Some caution is advised here, there are some reports that the leaves can contain the poison cyanide[4].
Medicinal: The decoction of the seed is demulcent and diuretic[4]. It is used in the treatment of kidney and urinary complaints[4].
The inflorescence is astringent and haemostatic[12].
Usage: The flowering panicles are used as brushes brooms and whisks etc[13][9][4][14][10].
Stems are used for weaving fences, mats, wattle houses etc[17].
The plant is an excellent source of biomass[2].
Pollinators: Wind
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Seed Ripens: Early Fall-Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: The immature plant is poisonous, especially if slightly wilted, since it can contain the toxins hydrogen cyanide and the alkaloid hordenine[4][18][2]. These substances are destroyed if the plant is dried or made into silage[2]. In small quantities, h
Also Known As: S. saccharatum. S. vulgare. Andropogon sorghum. Holcus bicolor. H. sorghum.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Natural Food Institute. Wonder Crops 1987.
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 Duke, James. Handbook of Energy Crops. 1983.
- ↑ Hill, Albert. Economic Botany. The Maple Press, 1952.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Tutin, Tom et al.. Flora Europaea. Cambridge University Press, 1964.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Schery. Robert. Plants for Man. Prentice Hall, 1972.
- ↑ Grounds, Roger. Ornamental Grasses. Christopher Helm, 1989.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Chiej, Roberto. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald, 1984.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.
- ↑ Brouk, Bohuslav. Plants Consumed by Man. Academic Press, 1975.