Agroeconomic assessment of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) varieties in the Nizhnevolzhsky region of Russia Sukhareva E. P., Belikina A. V.* Federal State Budget Scientific Institution, Federal Scientific Centre of Agroecology, Complex Melioration and Protective, Afforestation of the Russian Academy of Sciences (FSC of Agroecology RAS), Volgograd, Russia *(e-mail: belikina-a@vfanc.ru)
Online published on 25 December, 2023. Abstract Grain sorghum is a valuable cereal forage crop able to produce consistent yields under arid conditions. Since the 1930s, the Federal Scientific Centre for Agroecology of the Russian Academy of Sciences has conducted work on the selection and seed production of cereal sorghum. In light of the emergence of novel sorghum cultivars on the market, it is necessary to investigate their ability to produce a grain crop in the arid conditions of the Lower Volga region.The purpose of the study is to give an agroeconomic assessment of the modern varieties of grain of sorghum in the natural and climatic conditions.Experience in ecological testing was laid in triplicate, sorghum seeds were sown in the super-elite category, agro technologicalactivities were carried out generally accepted for the zone in the Lower Volga region. As a result of observing the weather conditions and analyzing the obtained crop, it was determined that the HTC during the growing season of grain sorghum was 0.67. Correlation analysis of sorghum yield data showed that it is more dependent on precipitation. A close inverse relationship has been established: the more precipitation, the higher the sorghum yield - 0.86598. The best yield of grain sorghum was obtained in the variety of local selection sorghum Belogorskoye - 2.23 t/ha, weight of 1000 grains - 21.5 g, protein content 2.86%, fat 2.3%.The calculation of the economic efficiency of growing grain sorghum for various purposes made it possible to determine that the economic benefit from obtaining green mass of sorghum is 24.5%, silage 123%, grain 36.8%.Thus, the cultivation of grain sorghum in the Lower Volga region is effective for meeting the needs of livestock and food industries. The resulting yield of sorghum grain in the environmental test was at the level of 2.23 to 0.95 t/ha. The leader in terms of yield and nutrient content in the grain was the variety of local selection Belogorskoye. Top Keywords Economic efficiency, Grain sorghum, Meteorological conditions, Productivity. Top |