Guinea-Race Sorghum Hybrids: Benefits for Producers in Mali.

Hybrid sorghum varieties based on the West African Guinea-race [Sorghum biocolor (L.) Moench] have the potential to increase farmer yields and improve food security in West Africa. On-farm trials of a diversity of sorghum types across agroecologies and in different farming practices can increase our knowledge of how these hybrids perform in different environments. 81 on-farm trials were replicated across space and time in Mande, Diola, and Koutiala districts in Mali during 2011 and 2012. Farmers planted three types of sorghum varieties, a hybrid, an improved variety, and a local check in two systems, an “improved” practice and farmer practice. Men planted sorghum in a monocrop while women planted sorghum in an intercrop with groundnuts. Overall, the improved practice resulted in higher mean yields (1332 kg/ha) than the local practice (829 kg/ha) and the hybrid mean yield (1184 kg/ha) was higher than both the improved variety (1085 kg/ha) and the local varieties (899 kg/ha). Hybrid varieties under improved practice had the highest yield (1439 kg/ha). However, there was variation in these results across demographics and agroecologies. Women achieved higher sorghum yields in an intercrop than men in a monocrop, but there were similar yield gains (23-29%) from the hybrids for both. Farmers in Mali maintain diverse fields with a range of soil fertility and in this study variety types and practices responded differently across this range. In 25% of the trials, yields were higher with improved or local varieties and these variety types filled a specific agroecological niche. New guinea-race sorghum hybrids show substantial benefits under many farm conditions and are a significant contribution to a basket of diversity that can improve production for smallholders. Developing and maintaining a diversity of available varieties and practices, including hybrids and improved varieties, is essential to meet the needs of diverse farming systems.