Crop Growth, Development and Yield in Semi-arid Conditions in Botswana. I. The Effects of Population Density and Row Spacing on Sorghum Bicolor

Abstract

SUMMARYA series of population density and row spacing trials were carried out with sorghum in conditions of increasingly severe water stress from 1980 to 1984. In conditions of reasonable water availability, increasing density resulted in increased leaf area indices, dry weight production and grain yields. In conditions of severely limiting water availability, increasing density resulted in developmental delays, density-dependent mortality and reduced plant dry weights, with little increase in dry weight production per hectare. In these conditions grain yields were reduced by increasing density. The proportion of dry weight allocated to grain declined with increasing density and decreasing plant size, a consequence of the requirement for a minimum plant size to support grain production. When plant size was reduced below a critical range, disproportionately large reductions in grain yield resulted.Optimum densities for grain production varied from below 10 000 plants ha−1 in dry conditions to over 120 000 plants ha−1 in moist conditions. Medium density treatments produced the largest grain yields on a long term basis, but the low density treatment showed a reduced risk of crop failure and greater yield stability.