AUSAF; A HIGH FODDER YIELDING SORGHUM VARIETY WITH BETTER NUTRITIONAL VALUE AND SILAGE QUALITY

The demand of high fodder yielding varieties of sorghum with better nutritional quality is increasing by the livestock farmers. The cultivation of high yielding fodder crops is compulsory need of the era for livestock industry development, especially in developing countries like Pakistan. Development of high fodder yielding varieties which have better nutritional value is a dire need for this region. In this regard, Fodder Research Institute, Sargodha, Pakistan has developed a new sorghum variety ‘Ausaf’ having high green fodder yield and better nutritional value. This variety is an outcome of the selection from local germplasm line S-145 during 2009-2017. It has proved its worth in all the yield trials and its performance is better than the existing Sorghum-2011 variety. It produced 11.60% and 8.25% higher green fodder yield as compared to check variety sorghum-2011 in National Uniform Fodder Yield Trials. Moreover, its green fodder contains 20.88% dry matter, 8.75% protein, 26.94% crude fiber and 3.18% crude fat. The new variety showed that it was moderately resistant to red leaf spot and long smut. Agronomic studies revealed that it is fit in a better way with the existing agronomic practices.