Grain Sorghum is a primary crop in the High Plains in drought vulnerable areas. The crop is frequently planted in a no-till system, but herbicide and insecticide treatment is common place. In 2015 and 2016, Kansas grain sorghum crops were decimated by the incidence of the sugar cane aphid. The threat from this pest has not been eliminated, reduced acres being planted have alleviated the incidence in 2017, but those acres will increase again in the future; therefore, four Kansas famers will plant grain sorghum with a mix of companion crops to see the impact to economics, environment and sustainability of the practice. Each grower will plant 15 dryland acres of the sorghum/companion mix adjacent to a field of sorghum planted without companion crops. Companion crops will be designed to work in symbiosis with the cash crop to make existing soil nutrients available and to attract beneficial insects. Plots with the sorghum/companion mix will have no additional treatment of herbicides or insecticides applied once in the ground. Adjacent fields with treatment of crop protection products will be used as a comparison. Soil health will also be analyzed on each plot by looking at different indicators that demonstrate improvement.
