Sorghum Germplasm for Enhanced Productivity and Nutrition

Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is an important crop in the semi-arid tropics and being cultivated in about 110 countries. The rate of genetic gain in sorghum has been slower compared to other field crops, that could be because the crop is grown under marginal environments with limited resources, and often affected by biotic and abiotic stresses, besides other constraints such as poor crop management and low research priority than other cereals. Globally, a large number of sorghum germplasm accessions have been conserved in genebanks, and they are source of genetic variation to potentially raise genetic gain, and have played a key role in improving sorghum productivity. This chapter detailed about major constraints in sorghum production and research domains, germplasm diversity, capturing germplasm diversity in the form of representative subsets, mini core collection as a source of variation for important traits, wild and weedy relatives for sorghum improvement, and enhancing genetic gains. This information could greatly help sorghum researchers in planning and prioritizing traits for enhancing productivity and nutrient density of sorghum cultivars that can deliver genetic gains in the farmers’ fields.