The Cultivation Technique for Increasing the Stalk Sugar Content of Energy Plant Sweet Sorghum in Yellow River Delta

Abstract

This study was carried out to investigate the suitable technique for increasing the stalk sugar content of two sweet sorghum cultivars (salt-tolerant cultivar Jitianza 2 and salt-sensitive cultivar Lvneng 1) in saline soils of Yellow River Delta. Stalk sugar content of sweet sorghum in saline soil was significantly increased using the following integrated cultivation technique: (1) increasing organic fertilizer level; (2) applying optimum phosphorus and potassium fertilizer; (3) surface fertilizer application; (4) cultivating salt-tolerant sweet sorghum cultivars; (5) planting with plastic mulching; (6) planting in the early of the optimum seedling time (sowing as early as possible); (7) removing tillers during seedling stage; (8) cutting spike by half-strength before flowering. Jitianza 2 had higher stalk Brix than Lvneng 1 under the same cultivation condition. Therefore, planting salt-tolerant sweet sorghum cultivars in saline soil combined with these integrated cultivation techniques can get higher stalk sugar content in Yellow River Delta of China, which was beneficial for energy alcohol production from sweet sorghum.