Harnessing Sorghum Landraces to Breed High-Yielding, Grain Mold-Tolerant Cultivars With High Protein for Drought-Prone Environments.

Mallela Venkata Nagesh Kumar,Seshu Gokenpally,Mulinti Sridhar,Kodari Avil Kumar,Mathyam Prabhakar,Maparla Venkata Ramana,Rumandla Jagadeeshwar,Chanda Venkata Sameer Kumar,Vittal Ramya,Hariprasanna Krishna,Mathyam Prabhakar,Mahalingam Govindaraj,Setaboyine Maheshwaramma

doi:10.3389/fpls.2021.659874

Abstract

Intermittent drought and an incidence of grain mold disease are the two major constraints affecting sorghum production and productivity. The study aimed at developing drought-tolerant sorghum varieties possessing a high protein content and tolerance to grain mold with stable performance using additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) and genotype and genotype × environment interaction (GGE) biplot methods. Systematic hybridization among the 11 superior landraces resulted in subsequent pedigree-based breeding and selection from 2010 to 2015 evolved 19 promising varieties of grains such as white, yellow, and brown pericarp grains. These grain varieties were evaluated for their adaptability and stability for yield in 13 rainfed environments and for possessing tolerance to grain mold in three hot spot environments. A variety of yellow pericarp sorghum PYPS 2 (3,698 kg/ha; 14.52% protein; 10.70 mg/100 g Fe) possessing tolerance to grain mold was identified as a stable variety by using both AMMI and GGE analyses. Four mega-environments were identified for grain yield and fodder yield. Sorghum varieties PYPS 2, PYPS 4, PYPS 8, and PYPS 11 were highly stable in E2 with a low grain mold incidence. Besides meeting the nutritional demand of smallholder farmers under dryland conditions, these varieties are suitable for enhancing sorghum productivity under the present climate change scenario.

Highlights

Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is a widely adaptable cereal crop cultivated in tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions of the world
While the rainy season is predominated by the sorghum hybrids, the post-rainy season is dominated by openpollinated varieties that contribute to low sorghum productivity (Patil et al, 2014)
In the field evaluation of these landraces from 2008 to 2010, a single-plant selection was followed by self-pollinating main panicles of individual landrace collections for three generations to bring a genetic uniformity within the landraces at the Regional Agricultural Research Station (RARS), Palem, Telangana (Former Andhra Pradesh), India

Summary

Introduction

Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is a widely adaptable cereal crop cultivated in tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions of the world It is the fifth most important cereal crop next to wheat, rice, maize, and barley, and it is a staple food for millions of people in the semiarid regions of Asia and Africa (Mundia et al, 2019). The productivity of sorghum in India is still considered to be low at 849 kg/ha compared to the average global productivity of 1,444 kg/ha (FAOSTAT, 2019). This can be attributed to poor soils (marginal lands), unreliable rainfall, incidence of insect pests and diseases, and poor crop input management. This indicates that a greater emphasis is required for separating and strengthening the focus of rainy and post-rainy breeding on the cultivars’ genetic enhancement and their adaptability

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