Sorghum

Sorghum (/ˈsɔːrɡəm/) or broomcorn is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption, in pastures for animals as fodder, and as bristles for brooms.[2] Sorghum grain is a nutritious food rich in protein, dietary fiber, B vitamins, and minerals.

Sorghum
S. bicolor
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Panicoideae
Supertribe: Andropogonodae
Tribe: Andropogoneae
Subtribe: Saccharinae
Genus: Sorghum
Moench 1794, conserved name not Sorgum Adanson 1763
Type species
S. bicolor
Synonyms[1]
  • Blumenbachia Koeler 1802, rejected name not Schrad. 1825 (Loasaceae)
  • Sarga Ewart
  • Vacoparis Spangler
  • Andropogon subg. Sorghum Hackel.

Sorghum is either cultivated in warm climates worldwide or naturalized in open plains.[3] In 2021, world production of sorghum was 61 million tonnes, with the United States as the leading grower.

History

Sorghum was domesticated from its wild ancestor more than 5,000 years ago in what is today Sudan. The newest evidence comes from an archaeological site near Kassala in eastern Sudan, dating from 3500 to 3000 BC, and is associated with the neolithic Butana Group culture.[4] It was the staple food of the kingdom of Alodia.[5]

Taxonomy

Sorghum is in the grass family, Poaceae, in the subfamily Panicoideae, in the tribe Andropogoneae the same as maize (Zea mays), big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi), and sugarcane (Saccharum spp.).

Species

Accepted species recorded include:[6]

A plate of sorghum grain
  • Sorghum amplum – northwestern Australia
  • Sorghum angustum – Queensland
  • Sorghum arundinaceum – Africa, Indian Subcontinent, Madagascar, islands of the western Indian Ocean
  • Sorghum bicolor – cultivated sorghum, often individually called sorghum, also known as durra, jowari, or milo. Native to Sahel region of Africa; naturalized in many places
  • Sorghum brachypodum – Northern Territory of Australia
  • Sorghum bulbosum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
  • Sorghum burmahicum – Thailand, Myanmar
  • Sorghum controversum – India
  • Sorghum × drummondii – Sahel and West Africa
  • Sorghum ecarinatum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
  • Sorghum exstans – Northern Territory of Australia
  • Sorghum grande – Northern Territory, Queensland
  • Sorghum halepense – Johnson grass – North Africa, islands of eastern Atlantic, southern Asia from Lebanon to Vietnam; naturalized in East Asia, Australia, the Americas
  • Sorghum interjectum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
  • Sorghum intrans – Northern Territory, Western Australia
  • Sorghum laxiflorum – Philippines, Lesser Sunda Islands, Sulawesi, New Guinea, northern Australia
  • Sorghum leiocladum – Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria
  • Sorghum macrospermum – Northern Territory of Australia
  • Sorghum matarankense – Northern Territory, Western Australia
  • Sorghum nitidum – East Asia, Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Micronesia
  • Sorghum plumosum – Australia, New Guinea, Indonesia
  • Sorghum propinquum – China, Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Christmas Island, Micronesia, Cook Islands
  • Sorghum purpureosericeum – Sahel from Mali to Tanzania; Yemen, Oman, India
  • Sorghum stipoideum – Northern Territory, Western Australia
  • Sorghum timorense – Lesser Sunda Islands, Maluku, New Guinea, northern Australia
  • Sorghum trichocladum – Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras
  • Sorghum versicolor – eastern + southern Africa from Ethiopia to Namibia; Oman
  • Sorghum virgatum – dry regions from Senegal to the Levant.

Genetics and genomics

Agrobacterium transformation can be used on this genus,[7] as shown in a 2018 report of such a transformation system.[7] A 2013 study developed and validated an SNP array for molecular breeding.[8][9]

Sorghum production – 2021
Country (Millions of tonnes)
 United States11.4
 India4.8
 Ethiopia4.4
 Mexico4.4
 Argentina3.3
 China3.0
World61.4
Source: FAOSTAT of the United Nations[10]

Distribution and habitat

Seventeen of the 25 species are native to Australia,[11][12][13][14] with the range of some extending to Africa, Asia, Mesoamerica, and certain islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.[15][16]

Production

In 2021, world production of sorghum was 61 million tonnes, led by the United States with 19% of the total (table). India, Ethiopia, and Mexico were secondary producers.

Toxicity

In the early stages of plant growth, some sorghum species may contain levels of hydrogen cyanide, hordenine, and nitrates lethal to grazing animals.[17] Plants stressed by drought or heat can also contain toxic levels of cyanide and nitrates at later stages in growth.[18]

Uses

Sorghum grain
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy329 kJ (79 kcal)
72.1 g
Sugars2.53 g
Dietary fiber6.7 g
3.46 g
Saturated0.61 g
Monounsaturated1.13 g
Polyunsaturated1.56 g
10.6 g
VitaminsQuantity
%DV
Vitamin A equiv.
0%
0 μg
Thiamine (B1)
29%
0.332 mg
Riboflavin (B2)
8%
0.096 mg
Niacin (B3)
25%
3.69 mg
Pantothenic acid (B5)
7%
0.367 mg
Vitamin B6
34%
0.443 mg
Folate (B9)
5%
20 μg
Vitamin C
0%
0 mg
Vitamin E
3%
0.5 mg
MineralsQuantity
%DV
Calcium
1%
13 mg
Copper
14%
0.284 mg
Iron
26%
3.36 mg
Magnesium
46%
165 mg
Manganese
76%
1.6 mg
Phosphorus
41%
289 mg
Potassium
8%
363 mg
Selenium
17%
12.2 μg
Sodium
0%
2 mg
Zinc
18%
1.67 mg
Other constituentsQuantity
Water12.4 g

Percentages are roughly approximated using US recommendations for adults.
Source: USDA FoodData Central

The grain is edible and nutritious. It can be eaten raw when young and milky, but has to be boiled or ground into flour when mature.[19]

Sorghum cultivation has been linked by archeological research to ancient Sudan around 6,000 to 7,000 BP.[20] One species, S. bicolor,[21] native to Africa with many cultivated forms,[22] is a common crop worldwide, used for food (in the form of grain or sorghum syrup), animal fodder, the production of alcoholic beverages, and biofuels.

In Nigeria, the pulverized red leaf-sheaths of sorghum have been used to dye leather, and in Algeria, sorghum has been used to dye wool.[23]

Nutrition

Sorghum grain is 72% carbohydrates including 7% dietary fiber, 11% protein, 3% fat, and 12% water (table). In a reference amount of 100 grams (3.5 oz), sorghum grain supplies 79 calories and rich contents (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of several B vitamins and dietary minerals (table).

Polyphenols

All sorghums contain mixed polyphenols, such as phenolic acids and flavonoids.[24] Sorghum grains are one of the highest food sources of proanthocyanidins.[25]

Cultivation

Most varieties of sorghum are drought- and heat-tolerant, nitrogen-efficient,[26] and are grown particularly in arid and semi-arid regions where the grain is one of the staples for poor and rural people. These varieties are forage in many tropical regions. S. bicolor is a food crop in Africa, Central America, and South Asia, and is the fifth most common cereal crop grown in the world.[27][28]

Role in global economy

Global demand for sorghum increased dramatically between 2013 and 2015, when China began purchasing US sorghum crops to use as livestock feed as a substitute for domestically grown maize. China purchased around $1 billion worth of American sorghum per year until April 2018, when China imposed retaliatory duties on American sorghum as part of the trade war between the two countries.[29]

References

  1. "World Checklist of Selected Plant Families: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew". Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  2. Hariprasanna, K.; Patil, J. V. (2015), Madhusudhana, R.; Rajendrakumar, P.; Patil, J.V. (eds.), "Sorghum: Origin, Classification, Biology and Improvement", Sorghum Molecular Breeding, New Delhi: Springer India, pp. 3–20, doi:10.1007/978-81-322-2422-8_1, ISBN 978-81-322-2421-1, retrieved 1 June 2023
  3. "Sorghum". County-level distribution maps from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  4. "Earliest Evidence of Domesticated Sorghum Discovered". Science News. 28 September 2017. Archived from the original on 9 February 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  5. Welsby, Derek (2002). The Medieval Kingdoms of Nubia. Pagans, Christians and Muslims Along the Middle Nile. British Museum. ISBN 978-0-7141-1947-2.
  6. "The Plant List: Sorghum". Royal Botanic Gardens Kew and Missouri Botanic Garden. 2013. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  7. Guo, Minliang; Ye, Jingyang; Gao, Dawei; Xu, Nan; Yang, Jing (2019). "Agrobacterium-mediated horizontal gene transfer: Mechanism, biotechnological application, potential risk and forestalling strategy". Biotechnology Advances. 37 (1): 259–270. doi:10.1016/j.biotechadv.2018.12.008. eISSN 1873-1899. ISSN 0734-9750. PMID 30579929. S2CID 58600661.
  8. Varshney, Rajeev; Bohra, Abhishek; Yu, Jianming; Graner, Andreas; Zhang, Qifa; Sorrells, Mark (2021). "Designing Future Crops: Genomics-Assisted Breeding Comes of Age". Trends in Plant Science. 26 (6): 631–649. doi:10.1016/j.tplants.2021.03.010. ISSN 1360-1385. PMID 33893045. S2CID 233382115.
  9. Bekele, Wubishet; Wieckhorst, Silke; Friedt, Wolfgang; Snowdon, Rod (2013). "High-throughput genomics in sorghum: from whole-genome resequencing to a SNP screening array". Plant Biotechnology Journal. 11 (9): 1112–1125. doi:10.1111/pbi.12106. ISSN 1467-7644. PMID 23919585. S2CID 206248573.
  10. "Production of sorghum in 2021, Crops/Regions/World list/Production Quantity/Year (pick lists)". UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Corporate Statistical Database (FAOSTAT). 2023. Retrieved 30 September 2023.
  11. Henry, Robert; Furtado, Agnelo; Brozynska, Marta (2016). "Genomics of crop wild relatives: expanding the gene pool for crop improvement". Plant Biotechnology Journal. 14 (4): 1070–85. doi:10.1111/pbi.12454. eISSN 1467-7652. ISSN 1467-7644. PMID 26311018. S2CID 3402991.
  12. Dillon, Sally L.; Lawrence, Peter K.; Henry, Robert J.; Ross, Larry; Price, H. James; Johnston, J. Spencer (2004). "Sorghum laxiflorum and S. macrospermum, the Australian native species most closely related to the cultivated S. bicolor based on ITS1 and ndhF sequence analysis of 28 Sorghum species". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 249 (3–4): 233–246. doi:10.1007/s00606-004-0210-7. eISSN 1615-6110. ISSN 0378-2697. S2CID 27363366.
  13. Sally L Dillon; Peter K Lawrence; Robert J Henry; Larry Ross; H James Price; J Spencer Johnston (2004). "Sorghum laxiflorum and S. macrospermum, the Australian native species most closely related to the cultivated S. bicolor based on ITS1 and ndhF sequence analysis of 25 Sorghum species". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 249 (3–4): 233–246. doi:10.1007/s00606-004-0210-7. S2CID 27363366. Archived from the original on 13 August 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  14. "Sorghum". Atlas of Living Australia. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  15. "Tropicos, Sorghum Moench". Tropicos. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  16. "Flora of China Vol. 22 Page 600 高粱属 gao liang shu Sorghum Moench, Methodus. 207. 1794". Efloras. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  17. "Sorghum". Victoria, Australia: Agriculture Victoria. Archived from the original on 2 October 2019. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  18. "Cyanide (prussic acid) and nitrate in sorghum crops". Queensland Government, Primary Industries and Fisheries. 7 November 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  19. The Complete Guide to Edible Wild Plants. New York]: Skyhorse Publishing, United States Department of the Army. 2009. p. 94. ISBN 978-1-60239-692-0. OCLC 277203364.
  20. Carney, Judith (2009). In the Shadow of Slavery. University of California Press. p. 16. ISBN 9780520269965.
  21. Mutegi, Evans; Sagnard, Fabrice; Muraya, Moses; et al. (1 February 2010). "Ecogeographical distribution of wild, weedy and cultivated Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench in Kenya: implications for conservation and crop-to-wild gene flow" (PDF). Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution. 57 (2): 243–253. doi:10.1007/s10722-009-9466-7. S2CID 28318220.
  22. Hauser, Stefan; Wairegi, Lydia; Asadu, Charles L. A.; Asawalam, Damian O.; Jokthan, Grace; Ugbe, Utiang (2015). "Sorghum- and millet-legume cropping systems" (PDF). Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International and Africa Soil Health Consortium. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  23. Dalziel, J.M. (1926). "African Leather Dyes". Bulletin of Miscellaneous Information. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 6 (6): 230. doi:10.2307/4118651. JSTOR 4118651.
  24. Dykes, Linda; Rooney, Lloyd W. (2006). "Sorghum and millet phenols and antioxidants" (PDF). Journal of Cereal Science. 44 (3): 236–251. doi:10.1016/j.jcs.2006.06.007.
  25. Luca, Simon Vlad; Macovei, Irina; Bujor, Alexandra; et al. (2020). "Bioactivity of dietary polyphenols: The role of metabolites". Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. 60 (4): 626–659. doi:10.1080/10408398.2018.1546669. PMID 30614249. S2CID 58651581.
  26. Mulhollem, Jeff (10 August 2020). "Flavonoids' presence in sorghum roots may lead to frost-resistant crop". Pennsylvania State University. … sorghum is a crop that can respond to climate change because of its high water- and nitrogen-use efficiency …
  27. Tove Danovich (15 December 2015). "Move over, quinoa: sorghum is the new 'wonder grain'". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  28. Willy H. Verheye, ed. (2010). "Growth and Production of Sorghum and Millets". Soils, Plant Growth and Crop Production. Vol. II. EOLSS Publishers. ISBN 978-1-84826-368-0.
  29. "Sorghum, targeted by tariffs, is a U.S. crop China started buying only five years ago". LA Times. 18 April 2018. Retrieved 28 January 2019.

Further reading

  • Watson, Andrew M. (1983). Agricultural Innovation in the Early Islamic World: The Diffusion of Crops and Farming Techniques, 700–1100. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-24711-X.
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