Variety and Number of Shoots in the Second Ratoon Sorgum Cultivation

Abstract

Sorghum plants are typically left to wither after harvest, but the remaining stalks have the potential for ratoon cultivation. Ratoon cultivation is more efficient, economical, and rapid. Sorghum ratoon can be maintained for up to two ratoon cycles. Second cycle ratoon sorghum can yield similarly to or even higher than the first cycle. An experiment was conducted in the village of Cabeyan, Bendosari sub-district, Sukoharjo Regency, Central Java from May 2021 to August 2021. The aim of this study was to determine the optimal varieties and number of shoots for ratoon 2 and investigate the interaction between the varieties and number of shoots. The study used a complete randomized block design with two factors. Factor I consisted of five types of sorghum varieties: Numbu, Super 1, Suri 3, Keller, and Kawali. Factor II consisted of the number of shoots: 1, 2, 3, and 4. This produced 20 treatment combinations, which were repeated thrice, resulting in 60 experimental units. The observations were analyzed using variance analysis with an F test of 5% significance level, followed by a Duncan multiple range test. The experimental parameters included plant height, stem diameter, tissue nitrogen content, seed weight per cluster, and sap content. The research results identified the most promising varieties with the highest seed weight per cluster in ratoon 2, namely Kawali, followed by Numbu, Super 1, Suri 3, and Keller. A total of four shoots on ratoon two produced the highest weight and sugar content per cluster. The Kawali variety is the best for achieving the highest sugar content. No interaction was observed between sorghum varieties and the shoot number.