The 2018 growing season continued to be a rollercoaster for much of the Southwest, especially regarding dryland acres.  Early rains got most dryland corn crops off to a good start, but drought and heat during pollination and grain fill in Central and South Texas removed much of the yield potential that the good start had provided.  For cotton growers, the weather in many places saw dryland cotton range from unable to emerge in areas around Lubbock, TX, to very stressed in Central and South TX. In addition, late rains as the drought broke in Central TX delayed harvest and likely reduced quality for many.  As a result of these challenges, it’s no surprise that some growers are looking for other options to diversify their operations, spread risk, and reduce input costs whenever possible.

Dr. Brent Bean, agronomist for the Sorghum Checkoff, points out in his article “Adding Sorghum to the Crop Mix for 2019” that sorghum may be just the answer that some growers are looking for.  Adding sorghum into the crop mix can reduce input costs on dryland acres and offer yield advantages for other crops in a rotation.  In addition, sorghum is also a more drought tolerant crop than corn and can often still produce grain in situations where corn will fail.

For more details on the fit of sorghum as a part of the rotation you can read Dr. Brent Bean’s article on the Sorghum Checkoff’s website here.

Download a copy of this Technical Bulletin: Is Sorghum an Option.