Sorghum - Bicolour

Sorghum bicolor

Story: Sorghum is a maize-like grass grown primarily for its grains. The sorghum we're sharing has small white, pearl-like grains, just peering out of maroon husks. It is highly nutritious, being high in protein, fibre and minerals. The grains are used in both South Asia and East Africa to make flat breads, they're a staple crop in both regions, known for their impressive drought tolerance. It can be  eaten as a whole grain and  also makes a fantastic popcorn alternative! 

Sow: Sow in root trainers or deep pots in March-May indoors.

Requirements: Harden off once all chance of frost has passed and then plant out in moist soil - though plants will tolerate dry conditions as they grow - give each plant around 30cm space on all sides

When to harvest for food: When the seeds are fully ripe and begin to dry on the plant. Towards the end of Summer

When to harvest for seed saving: When the plant is mature, the husks will be white in a maroon casing, make sure to harvest in a relatively dry period and then hang to dry in a place with good ventilation.

Seed contributors: Omved

Isolation needed: Yes

Saving seed: The flowers of Sorghum are mostly self-fertile. There is a small chance of cross pollination by wind. For this reason it is best to grow just one variety of sorghum to avoid any cross pollination (unless you can provide a distance of 100ft between varieties). Allow the grain to become fully ripe on the plant – the colour usually changes as it ripens and the grain begins to dry out. Birds find it delicious at this point so it may be worth covering ripening grain heads with mesh bags. Once the heads of grain are full and quite dry, harvest the heads by cutting the stem just below the grain head on a dry, sunny day. Leave these to dry by hanging for a week or two more in a well ventilated space. Them crumble the seeds from the stem. Package, label and date. Just one head should give thousands of seeds, send as many seeds back to the SSN as you can. 

Number of plants to save seed from: 10 plants minimum, for genetic preservation 50+ is ideal (but maybe a bit much for the home seed saver!)

Pollination: Self pollinated and wind pollinated

How to send seed back: Please label all seed with variety, type, date and your contact. If you didn't get a chance to fill out our online data collection form, you can also send us a few lines about how it grew for you/flavour etc. Please aim to send back 1/2 cup of dried seed or more so that we can continue to share with network members. Send to: The Seed Saving Network, Omved Gardens, 1 Townsend Yard, N6 5JF.

Please remember, if you’re an individual grower you can order up to 4 packets of seeds. If you order more than this, you will receive just four packs to begin with. This is to ensure we get plenty of data in return and to keep our stocks sustainable for years to come.* 

*Community groups and Experienced Growers can order larger quantities, please email us if this is the case.

If an item is out of stock we will send a close alternative.