| dc.description.abstract | Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) is an important feed and food grain in semi-arid regions of the world. Recent food trends in the United States have made grain sorghum a food grain crop of interest to end-users and food processors. The Texas A&M Agrilife Research Sorghum Breeding Program has developed sorghum seed and pollinator parents that can produce specialty grain sorghum hybrids with distinct end uses: high digestibility protein; waxy endosperm; and high popping efficiency. In these types, the goal of this program is to provide inbred lines suitable for the production of specialty grain sorghum hybrids that meet demand for developing specialty grain markets. The purpose of this study is to assess the yield potential, grain functionality and quality of waxy hybrids across multiple production environments. In multiple environments, the waxy sorghum hybrids had increased grain yields and acceptable agronomic traits when compared to the waxy check hybrid used. The waxy hybrids also had flour pasting properties distinctly different than the heterozygous waxy and homozygous non-waxy checks. The waxy hybrids had higher water solubility indexes and higher peak viscosities with large environmental variation. Additionally, the waxy sorghum hybrids had lower pasting temperatures that had little environmental variation compared to the checks. In the evaluation of sorghum genotypes for popping attributes, variation existed among the tested genotypes for popping efficacy, expansion ratio and flake size. Threshing method significantly impacted pop sorghum traits and the threshing methods that have metal to seed contact reduce popping yields the most. Harvest maturity did not impact popping traits expect for flake size. | en |
