Potential of Sorghum as an Alternative to Corn Forage

Abstract

Climate change, which is currently characterized by increased atmospheric CO2, rising temperature, and altered pattern of precipitation, is affecting agricultural productivity. Rising temperatures and shifting precipitation patterns will alter the ability to meet crop water requirements, water availability, crop productivity, and costs of water access across the agricultural landscape. Searching for alternative crops with lower water requirements increased yield or organic matter per unit of water are important for agricultural sustainability. Sorghum is one of the world’s important crops; a crop that is adapted to a variety of agronomic and environmental conditions, particularly to areas with low rainfall or limited access of irrigation water. Forage Sorghum is able to produce comparable yield to corn suggesting that there is a potential for Sorghum to replace corn in areas where water supply is limited. But, there is a cost since corn silage, because of its high grain content, which is typically superior in digestible energy content to Sorghum forages. There is also a lack of information on the feeding value of Sorghum silages in high producing dairy cows as well as strategies that may be used for sorghum silage to replace a portion of the corn silage in dairy cattle diets.