Performance of sorghum-maize interspecific derivatives for forage attributes

Abstract

Over decades of crop improvement sorghum has led to yield plateau with persisting problems of biotic (shoot fly, stemborer, grain mold) and abiotic (drought, heat) causing yield losses in marginal conditions where the crop is grown. An attempt was made to cross the superior genotypes from sorghum and maize genera and study the derivatives after stabilizing through advancing and selection for several years. The derivatives resembled sorghum though anthocyanin pigmentation was observed in early generations. The derivatives with good forage traits were tested across two locations, Pantnagar and Hisar in India. Two genotypes were found promising for high biomass and quality traits (T2-2251-3-12) and high biomass, high tillering and low HCN (T3-2252-7-1). These can be utilized as new sources of variability in forage sorghum improvement programs.