Sorghum bicolor
Encyclopedia
Sorghum bicolor, commonly called sorghum and also known as durra or jowari, is a grass
species cultivated for its edible grain. Sorghum originated in northern Africa, and is now cultivated widely in tropical and subtropical regions. S. bicolor is typically an annual, but some cultivars are perennial. It grows in clumps that may reach over 4 metres high. The grain is small, ranging from 3 to 4 mm in diameter. Sweet sorghums are sorghum cultivars that are primarily grown for foliage; they are shorter than those grown for grain.
S. bicolor is the cultivated species of sorghum; its wild relatives make up the botanical genus Sorghum
.
Richard Pankhurst
reports (citing Augustus B. Wylde) that in 19th-century Ethiopia
, Durra was "often the first crop sown on newly cultivated land", explaining that this cereal did not require the thorough ploughing other crops did, and its roots not only decomposed into a good fertilizer, but they also helped to break up the soil while not exhausting the subsoil
.
The species can be used as a source for making ethanol fuel
, and in some environments may be better than maize
or sugarcane
, as it can grow under harsher conditions. It typically has protein levels of around 9 percent, enabling dependent human populations to subsist on it in times of famine, in contrast to regions where maize
has become the staple crop. It is also used for making a traditional corn broom
.
The reclaimed stalks of the sorghum plant are used to make a decorative millwork material marketed as Kirei board
.
Sweet sorghum
syrup is known as molasses in some parts of the U.S., although it is not true molasses
.
In China
, sorghum is fermented
and distilled to produce maotai
, which is regarded as one of the country's most famous liquors. Sorghum was ground and the flour was the main alternative to wheat in north China for a long time.
In India
, where it is commonly called Jwaarie, Jowar, Jola, or Jondhahlaa, sorghum is one of the staple sources of nutrition. An Indian Bread or Jowar Rotti or Jolada rotti
is prepared from this grain. In some countries, sweet sorghum stalks are used for producing biofuel by squeezing the juice and then fermenting into ethanol
. Texas A&M University
in the United States is currently running trials to find the best varieties for ethanol production from sorghum leaves and stalks in the USA.
In Korea
it is cooked with rice, or its flour is used to make cake that is called Susu bukkumi.
In Australia
, South America
, and the United States
(the second largest producer of sorghum after Nigeria
), sorghum grain is used primarily for livestock feed and in a growing number of ethanol plants.
Sorghum is one of a number of grains used as wheat substitutes in gluten-free recipes and products.
. This parasite is a devastating pest on the crop.
Poaceae
The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...
species cultivated for its edible grain. Sorghum originated in northern Africa, and is now cultivated widely in tropical and subtropical regions. S. bicolor is typically an annual, but some cultivars are perennial. It grows in clumps that may reach over 4 metres high. The grain is small, ranging from 3 to 4 mm in diameter. Sweet sorghums are sorghum cultivars that are primarily grown for foliage; they are shorter than those grown for grain.
S. bicolor is the cultivated species of sorghum; its wild relatives make up the botanical genus Sorghum
Sorghum
Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, one of which is raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. Species are native to tropical and subtropical regions of all continents...
.
Cultivation
The species can grow in arid soils and withstand prolonged droughts. It has four features that make it one of the most drought-resistant crops of all.- It has a very large root-to-leaf surface area.
- In times of drought it will roll its leaves to lessen water-loss by transpiration.
- If drought continues it will go into dormancy rather than dying.
- Its leaves are protected by a waxy cuticle.
Richard Pankhurst
Richard Pankhurst (academic)
Richard Keir Pethick Pankhurst OBE is a British academic with expertise in the study of Ethiopia.-Early life and education:...
reports (citing Augustus B. Wylde) that in 19th-century Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, Durra was "often the first crop sown on newly cultivated land", explaining that this cereal did not require the thorough ploughing other crops did, and its roots not only decomposed into a good fertilizer, but they also helped to break up the soil while not exhausting the subsoil
Subsoil
Subsoil, or substrata, is the layer of soil under the topsoil on the surface of the ground. The subsoil may include substances such as clay and/or sand that has only been partially broken down by air, sunlight, water, wind etc., to produce true soil...
.
Uses
Sorghum is cultivated in many parts of Asia and Africa, where its grains are used to make flat breads that form the staple food of many cultures. The grains can also be popped in a similar fashion to popcorn.The species can be used as a source for making ethanol fuel
Ethanol fuel
Ethanol fuel is ethanol , the same type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages. It is most often used as a motor fuel, mainly as a biofuel additive for gasoline. World ethanol production for transport fuel tripled between 2000 and 2007 from 17 billion to more than 52 billion litres...
, and in some environments may be better than maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
or sugarcane
Sugarcane
Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
, as it can grow under harsher conditions. It typically has protein levels of around 9 percent, enabling dependent human populations to subsist on it in times of famine, in contrast to regions where maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
has become the staple crop. It is also used for making a traditional corn broom
Broom
A broom is a cleaning tool consisting of stiff fibers attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. It is thus a variety of brush with a long handle. It is commonly used in combination with a dustpan....
.
The reclaimed stalks of the sorghum plant are used to make a decorative millwork material marketed as Kirei board
Kirei board
Kirei Board is an engineered panel product of the company Kirei USA, constructed from the left-over, post-harvest stalks of the sorghum plant....
.
Sweet sorghum
Sweet sorghum
Sweet sorghum is any of the many varieties of sorghum which have a high sugar content. Sweet sorghum will thrive better under drier and warmer conditions than many other crops and is grown primarily for forage, silage, and syrup production....
syrup is known as molasses in some parts of the U.S., although it is not true molasses
Molasses
Molasses is a viscous by-product of the processing of sugar cane, grapes or sugar beets into sugar. The word molasses comes from the Portuguese word melaço, which ultimately comes from mel, the Latin word for "honey". The quality of molasses depends on the maturity of the sugar cane or sugar beet,...
.
In China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, sorghum is fermented
Fermentation (food)
Fermentation in food processing typically is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohols and carbon dioxide or organic acids using yeasts, bacteria, or a combination thereof, under anaerobic conditions. Fermentation in simple terms is the chemical conversion of sugars into ethanol...
and distilled to produce maotai
Maotai
Maotai, or Moutai , is a Chinese liquor, or baijiu.It is produced in the town of Maotai , in the city of Renhuai, Guizhou province, Southwest China. It is believed that the town of Maotai possesses a unique climate and vegetation that contributes to the taste of the drink...
, which is regarded as one of the country's most famous liquors. Sorghum was ground and the flour was the main alternative to wheat in north China for a long time.
In India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, where it is commonly called Jwaarie, Jowar, Jola, or Jondhahlaa, sorghum is one of the staple sources of nutrition. An Indian Bread or Jowar Rotti or Jolada rotti
Jolada rotti
Jolada rotti is a specialty North Karnataka unleavened Indian bread made out of jowar . The name literally translates into jowar bread....
is prepared from this grain. In some countries, sweet sorghum stalks are used for producing biofuel by squeezing the juice and then fermenting into ethanol
Ethanol
Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. Best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, it is also used in thermometers, as a...
. Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
in the United States is currently running trials to find the best varieties for ethanol production from sorghum leaves and stalks in the USA.
In Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
it is cooked with rice, or its flour is used to make cake that is called Susu bukkumi.
In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(the second largest producer of sorghum after Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
), sorghum grain is used primarily for livestock feed and in a growing number of ethanol plants.
Sorghum is one of a number of grains used as wheat substitutes in gluten-free recipes and products.
Parasite
Sorghum is a host of the parasitic plant Striga hermonthicaStriga hermonthica
Striga hermonthica, commonly known as purple witchweed, is a parasitic plant belonging to the genus Striga. It is devastating to "major crops such as sorghum and rice . In subsaharan Africa in addition to S. bicolor, and O...
. This parasite is a devastating pest on the crop.
International naming
- Oka Baba ("Baba") in Yoruba Language
- Dawa in HausaHausa languageHausa is the Chadic language with the largest number of speakers, spoken as a first language by about 25 million people, and as a second language by about 18 million more, an approximate total of 43 million people...
- ज्वारी ( "Jwari") in MarathiMarathi languageMarathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
- ಜೋಳ (Jola) in KannadaKannada languageKannada or , is a language spoken in India predominantly in the state of Karnataka. Kannada, whose native speakers are called Kannadigas and number roughly 50 million, is one of the 30 most spoken languages in the world...
- கருஞ்சோளம் (Karuncoolam) in TamilTamil languageTamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
- "Jowar" in Gujarati
- "Kenike" in BamanankanBambara languageBambara, more correctly known as Bamanankan , its designation in the language itself , is a language spoken in Mali by as many as six million people...
- "モロコシ"(morokoshi) in japaneseJapanese languageis a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
- "mtama" in SwahiliSwahili languageSwahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...
- "muvya" in Kikamba
- "mabele" in Setswana
- "Jonnalu" in TeluguTelugu languageTelugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
- "高粱" in ChineseChinese languageThe Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
- "茭子" in Jin Chinese
- "Sorgo" in Brazilian PortugueseBrazilian PortugueseBrazilian Portuguese is a group of Portuguese dialects written and spoken by most of the 190 million inhabitants of Brazil and by a few million Brazilian emigrants, mainly in the United States, United Kingdom, Portugal, Canada, Japan and Paraguay....
- "수수" (susu) in Korean name
- "bɛɛl" in Nuer
- "Igwu" in Idoma
- "sirek" in Slovene language
- "ishaka" in Kinyarwanda
External links
- Crop Wild Relatives Gap Analysis Portal reliable information source on where and what to conserve ex-situ, regarding Sorghum genepool