Habits of growth.
The plants average four to seven feet in height, are erect, with rather thick and short-jointed stems, and very compact heads ten to twelve inches in length. The roots do not extend so deep as those of maize, but the root system is somewhat more dense in the upper eighteen inches of soil. Few of the roots are more than three feet deep. Kafir extracts soil moisture to a greater extent than maize, because of its long-continued growth in the fall. A valuable characteristic of the plant in dry regions is its ability to cease growth and remain dormant for several weeks during a period of drought. When hot, dry winds come, the leaves will roll up and the plant may remain with out growth for weeks. When rains come again, growth is resumed normally. If the crop is cut the stalks will sprout again, in the South, and produce a second and perhaps a third crop.
Distribution.
The growing of kafir and durra in the United States is very recent, at least to a commercial extent. The culture has had rapid development in Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas and California. Kafir and durra are peculiarly adapted to the drier sections of these states, owing to their ability to withstand hot summer winds and long droughts. They have not proved popular north of the 42d parallel, as none of the varieties mature satisfactorily that far north, while in the more humid regions east of the Missis sippi river other forage crops seem more desirable.
The culture of kafir probably reaches 1,500,000 acres at present. Its development was especially rapid in the period from 1893 to 1899, when some what dry conditions prevailed in the Great Plains region. In that period the production increased in Kansas, which has always been its greatest pro ducer, from 46,000 acres in 1893 to 618,000 acres in 1899.
Two state experiment stations have made care ful tests of the grain and forage produced in com parison with maize, with the following results: The above results were obtained under conditions too dry to be favorable for maize, as is indicated by the yields. Under conditions most favorable to maize, the kafir is usually at a disadvantage. The weight of a bushel of kafir is fifty-six pounds.
Varieties.
The three principal varieties of kafir are Red, White, and Blackhull. The principal difference
in appearance is in the color of seed and hulls, from which the names are derived. White kafir usually averages four to five feet in height under fair conditions. Red kafir grows six to eight inches taller, and yields more fodder and grain. The seed-coat, however, has an astringent taste, mak ing it less desirable for stock-food than grain from the white variety, which is not astringent. Black hull kafir produces a yield of grain and forage about equal to the Red kafir, and the grain is not astringent, and therefore is considered by many to be the more desirable.
The leading varieties of the durra group are the Yellow milo, Brown durra, White durra or Jeru salem corn (rice corn, Egyptian corn).
Yellow milo is grown rather extensively in some sections, especially in western Oklahoma and the Panhandle of Texas. It matures in about two weeks less time than kafir, and hence can be grown at higher altitudes and farther north than can that crop. The grain of Yellow milo is larger and more brittle than kafir, and hence is more easily masticated by stock. This crop is cultivated in every way the same as kafir. It is seldom grown for hay, soiling or silage, being used almost exclu sively for grain and fodder. The fodder is usually conoidered less valuable than that of either sor ghum or kafir, as the stalks are less leafy, and the crop is generally much more mature when cut. It is rather fliers difficult to harvest than kafir, as the heads often turn down and the stalks are not uniform in height. Thick planting is advisable, using at least five pounds of seed to the acre, as the percentage of goosenecked heads will be re duced, and the time of maturity will be more uni form. If planted thinly, Yellow mile stools and branches vigorously, and the heads on the various suckers do not ripen at the same time as the main head. It is most useful in the western part of the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska ; eastern Colorado ; and in New Mexico and Arizona. In the warm, dry parts of the small grain-grow ing sections, mile is an excellent crop to plant after the cereals are harvested. It may prove of value in eastern Oregon and Washington, especially if earlier strains can be developed.