• This season, sorghum was sown on nearly 15 thousand ha of Polish fields, whereas back in 2020 the figure for the entire country was said to be just 200 ha.
  • A persistent problem is the lack of very early varieties that can ripen in our climate, even when the growing season is delayed.
  • Prof. Tadeusz Michalski notes that this season’s weather has favored sorghum crops and that good yields are to be expected, although harvesting will take place somewhat later than usual.

The sorghum genus, which includes numerous species of warm-season grasses, originates from the hot climates of Africa, India, and Mexico. These plants are highly tolerant of drought and high temperatures, and, like maize, use C4 photosynthesis. Sorghum is valued in Polish fields for tolerating heat and water shortages better than maize, which it often displaces on poorer sites. The Polish Maize Producers Association is one of the advocates of its cultivation in Poland.

Sorghum in Polish fields

In Poland, the first attempts to grow sorghum on a larger scale took place around 20 years ago, when the crop gained some local popularity in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship in 2004–2007. The choice of varieties proved unsuccessful: they were too late-maturing for the Polish climate, and the plants often simply did not have time to ripen.

A lot has changed since then, including farmers’ awareness of variety selection. For several years now, sorghum has been gaining importance again, and the cultivated area is growing rapidly. As recently as 2020, the area under sorghum cultivation in Poland was estimated at around 200 ha. By contrast, in the season now ending, the crop was sown on around 14,7 thousand ha of Polish fields, an increase of nearly 2,5 thousand ha, or around 20 percent, compared with last year.

- Poland still lacks the earliest-maturing varieties that would ripen well in a season like this one, when vegetation is delayed. All the same, I think that no one who opted for sorghum this year will regret it. Apart from the period of the most severe drought, sorghum is very resistant to water shortages and should perform very well,” says Prof. Tadeusz Michalski.

Sorghum grain harvest timing and yield

Sorghum grain is generally harvested in the first ten days of October. Importantly, in Poland the grain is usually harvested while wet and must then be dried, as is also the case with maize. Natural drying is unlikely, so a moisture level of around 20 percent is quite suitable for starting the harvest, especially if the plants are already beginning to wilt. Above all, however, the grain must not be green. Even if it has not yet fully turned the typical light brown color, slight discoloration often disappears after drying.

- Sorghum in our experimental plots looks quite good at the moment. The grain varieties still need a little more time—I think at least 10 days. The weather was generally favorable this year, so I think we can expect grain yields of 6-9 t/ha. Overall, this was a fairly good year for sorghum. There was drought, but in May or June that does not matter much for this crop; conditions in August are key, and they were favorable,” explains the president of the Polish Association of Maize Producers.