By Jamie Martin
Farmers across the U.S. High Plains often face challenges caused by limited winter precipitation. Low snowfall during the winter months can increase the likelihood of drought during the growing season and affect crop production.
This year, very little snow has been recorded in parts of the region, raising concerns about possible drought conditions in western Nebraska. Agricultural researchers are encouraging farmers to explore alternative crops that can perform well even when water availability is limited.
“This calls for amplified efforts to adopt water-use-efficient alternative crops that can buffer major crops during drier years or in the event of crop failure,” said Rituraj Khound, UNL post-doctoral research associate at the Panhandle Research, Extension and Education Center (PREEC) in Scottsbluff.
One crop receiving increased attention is proso millet. Researchers studying this crop note that it can grow successfully using far less water than traditional crops such as corn or winter wheat.
Proso millet is particularly suited to dryland agriculture because of its ability to efficiently use available moisture. The crop also has a shorter growing season than many other grains, giving farmers greater flexibility in planting and crop rotation planning.
In the High Plains, proso millet has already become a useful crop in dryland systems, especially in eastern Colorado, western Nebraska, and parts of South Dakota. Researchers say it can play an even larger role as water conservation becomes more important in agriculture.
Corn production remains important in Nebraska, especially in irrigated regions that rely on groundwater resources. However, during dry years, irrigating large corn acreages can place significant pressure on available water supplies.
Introducing proso millet into a portion of irrigated acres may help farmers manage this challenge. By growing millet on some fields, producers can save water and ensure that enough irrigation remains available for their primary corn crop.
The crop also offers benefits for livestock producers. Proso millet grain contains energy values comparable to corn and can be used in feed rations for cattle and swine.
“Proso millet offers more than diversification. It can offer resilience to both dryland and irrigated cropping systems as a risk-buffering alternative crop,” said Khound . “By integrating millet into corn-based systems and leveraging modern breeding tools, growers in the High Plains can build robust cropping systems that maintain both profitability and productivity.”
Through continued research and adoption of drought-tolerant crops like proso millet, farmers in water-limited regions may be able to strengthen crop resilience and maintain stable farm productivity.
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Categories: National