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Sorghum Stover Digestibility as Affected by Juiciness¹

Most sorghum, Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench, hybrids used for silage are juicy genetic types and, thus, are high in moisture. Contrasting dry types are available, and their merit as silage relative to juicy types needs to be ascertained. Genotypes with high and low moisture levels controlled by a single gene difference were compared to determine if their stover differed in digestibility when measured by in vitro dry matter disappearance (IVDMD). Dry matter content and IVDMD were determined for isogenic dry vs. juicy lines and hybrids produced by those lines. Samples of stover were taken at anthesis and at grain maturity and digested in vitro. Significant differences existed for stover dry matter content (62.1 to 79.8%) at both stages of development and for IVDMD at anthesis (57.7 to 63.2%). Isogenic pairs rarely differed significantly in IVDMD, indicating little, if any, advantage for juicy sorghum genotypes in this study.

Key Words: Sorghum bicolor • Silage • IVDMD

² Research geneticist, USDA-ARS, College Station, TX 77843, former graduate student; Texas A&M Univ. (present address, Facultad de Agronomia, Universidad Central de Venezuela, Marcay, Venezuela), and associate professor, Texas Agric. Exp. Stn., Lubbock, TX 79401, respectively.

Received for publication August 19, 1977.