Raphaël, P and Kakkera, A and Kholova, J and François, T (2024) The genotypic variation in the positive response of sorghum to higher sowing density is linked to an increase in water use efficiency. European Journal of Agronomy (TSI), 158. pp. 1-8. ISSN 1161-0301
![[img]](http://oar.icrisat.org/style/images/fileicons/application_pdf.png) |
PDF
- Published Version
Available under License ["licenses_description_cc_attribution" not defined]. Download (1MB) |
Abstract
In semi-arid tropical areas, sorghum is sown at very low planting densities. Hence, increasing plant density represents an opportunity to improve productivity. However, assessing the expected increase in water needs is critical prior to testing higher densities under rainfed conditions. This was tested with a panel of elite cultivars in field and lysimiter experiments, and testing the effects of two density treatment, high (HD, 22 plants.m-²) and low (LD, 11 plants.m-²), on grain and biomass yield and on water use and water use efficiency (WUE). Doubling the conventional sowing density significantly increased biomass and grain yield, with a genotypic variability in the biomass response. No link was found between the response to density and the maintenance of the tillering capacity, whereas the response to density was somewhat explained by a differential increase in the leaf area index under high density (r=0.43 P<0.05). Lysimeter experiments showed that, compared with the conventional density, the high-density treatment had 62% increase in biomass vs a 38% increase in water use, resulting in a 17% higher WUE on average of the genotypes tested. There was an appreciable genotypic variability in this degree of WUE increase under high density. The most striking result was the very tight positive link between the biomass response to density and the differential increase in WUE in the dry season (r=0.91 P<0.0001), whereas in the wet season this link was negative (r=-0.48 P<0.02). This work shows that intensifying sorghum production by increasing sowing density is possible, in the short term using cultivars that show the largest WUE increase under high density, in the longer term by breeding high-density adapted cultivars, targeting plant traits that explain the tight link between higher WUE and higher yield under high density.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Divisions: | Global Research Program - Accelerated Crop Improvement |
| CRP: | UNSPECIFIED |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Productivity, Sustainable intensification, Semi-arid tropics, Vapor pressure deficit, Lysimeters, Fodder |
| Subjects: | Others > Semi-Arid Tropics Mandate crops > Sorghum |
| Depositing User: | Mr Nagaraju T |
| Date Deposited: | 05 Nov 2024 05:33 |
| Last Modified: | 05 Nov 2024 05:33 |
| URI: | http://oar.icrisat.org/id/eprint/12852 |
| Official URL: | https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/... |
| Projects: | UNSPECIFIED |
| Funders: | UNSPECIFIED |
| Acknowledgement: | The senior and corresponding author are supported by a grant the Make Our Planet Great Again (MOPGA) ICARUS project (Improve Crops in Arid Regions and Future Climates) funded by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR, grant ANR-17-MPGA-0011), by the Occitanie Region through a financial contribution to grant ANR-17-MPGA-0011, and by Montpellier University of Excellence (I-Site MUSE). |
| Links: |
Actions (login required)
 |
View Item |
Altmetric
Altmetric