Many farmers in West and Central Africa (WCA) prefer tall (>3 m) grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] for various reasons. This study seeks to determine (i) what yield superiority newly bred, tall, photoperiod‐sensitive guinea‐race sorghum hybrids can provide relative to an adapted landrace variety across a wide range of productivity conditions, and (ii) the risk of these hybrids failing to provide yield superiority for individual farmers. Seven hybrids, one local check, and eight pure‐line progenies were evaluated in 37 farmer‐managed, on‐farm yield trials across three Malian zones and 3 yr. Environments were classified into four productivity groups (low [0.78–1.10 Mg ha⁻¹], mid‐low [1.10–1.50 Mg ha⁻¹], mid‐high [1.50–2.00 Mg ha⁻¹] and high [2.00–2.65 Mg ha⁻¹]) based on their trial mean grain yield. Mean yields of the seven tall hybrids were 3 to 17% (ranging from 0.06 to 0.28 Mg ha⁻¹) higher than that of the local check across all environments and were highest (14–47%) averaged across the seven trials with the lowest mean yields. The individual overall highest‐yielding hybrid showed superiorities over the local check in the low, mid‐low, mid‐high, and high productivity levels of 0.43 (47%), 0.14 (10%), 0.47 (27%), and 0.34 (14%) Mg ha⁻¹, respectively. The tall hybrids rarely had yields significantly inferior to the local check. Farmers’ preference for, and the possible benefits of, taller plant types may lead farmers to grow tall hybrids, particularly under the typical low‐productivity production conditions of WCA.

Malian farmers’ traditional system for managing seed of sorghum, an indigenous crop of vital importance for food security and survival, can be conceptualized as a commons. Although this system maintains a wide range of varieties and helps ensure access to seed, its ability to create and widely disseminate new varieties to meet evolving opportunities and challenges is limited. A network of farmer groups, public breeding programs, and development organizations collaborating in decentralized creation and dissemination of sorghum varieties in Mali is examined regarding (1) how the network developed and what activities it conducts; (2) the resulting varietal diversity, varietal performance and organizational models; and (3) the elements of the traditional seed system that were maintained, strengthened or transformed. A single-case study approach was used that relies on published literature, official catalogues of released varieties and a database of farmer seed-cooperative requests for foundation seed. The functioning of the network and its varietal-, seed-, and organizational- outcomes are documented and the elements of the traditional sorghum seed system that are maintained or strengthened are analyzed. The evolution of the network’s reliance on commoning as a social process and its strengthening of core Seed Commons features are discussed with a view to the network’s contributions to targeted development outcomes and potential replicability. The case demonstrates how creating a framework for collaboration, enabling actors and organizations to take on collective responsibility while maintaining distributed decision-making at local level, opens opportunities for transforming farming- and food-systems towards sustainability and resilience.

The effectiveness of on‐farm and/or on‐station early generation yield testing was examined to maximize the genetic gains for sorghum yield under smallholder famer production conditions in West Africa. On‐farm first‐stage yield trials (augmented design, 150 genotypes with subsets of 50 genotypes tested per farmer) and second‐stage yield trials (replicated α‐lattice design, 21 test genotypes) were conducted, as well as on‐station α‐lattice first‐ and second‐stage trials under contrasting phosphorous conditions. On‐farm testing was effective, with yield showing significant genetic variance and acceptable heritabilities (0.56 in first‐ and 0.61 to 0.83 in second‐stage trials). Predicted genetic gains from on‐station yield trials were always less than from direct testing on‐farm, although on‐station trials under low‐phosphorus and combined over multiple environments improved selection efficiencies. Modeling alternative designs for on‐farm yield testing (augmented, farmer‐as‐incomplete‐block, multiple lattice, and augmented p‐rep) indicated that acceptable heritabilities (0.57 to 0.65) could be obtained with all designs for testing 150 progenies in 20 trials and 75 plots per farmer. Ease of implementation and risk of errors would thus be key criteria for choice of design. Integrating results from on‐station and on‐farm yield testing appeared beneficial as progenies selected both by on‐farm and on‐station first‐stage trials showed higher on‐farm yields in second‐stage testing.

A requirement for the successful development of new sorghum varieties in Mali is effective evaluation of grain qualities, since sorghum is a staple food crop on which farmers rely for food security. The diversity of grain quality and social aspects that determine varietal acceptability for processing and cooking, however, make this a challenging task. As the processors of sorghum grain in households, women’s knowledge of grain quality traits can contribute to this work. Our objective is to understand opportunities to use grain quality traits to identify experimental varieties that may contribute to food security. Culinary evaluations were conducted in nine villages across two sorghum production zones. Three teams of women, one per replicate, processed, cooked and evaluated five test varieties in each village. Sensory evaluations were conducted by 25 taste testers per village. The major varietal differences observed included the decortication losses, women’s appreciation for ease of processing, and consistency of the prepared food. The participatory evaluation of the quality testing results led to the development of the concept of ‘food yield’. Discussion of these results focuses on designing cost-efficient grain and food quality evaluations that rely on women’s expertise as processors and strengthens their role in the variety development process.

Sorghum, a major crop for income generation and food security in West and Central Africa, is predominantly grown in low-input farming systems with serious soil phosphorus (P) deficiencies. This study (a) estimates genetic parameters needed to design selection protocols that optimize genetic gains for yield under low-phosphorus conditions and (b) examines the utility of introgressed backcross nested association mapping (BCNAM) populations for diversifying Malian breeding materials. A total of 1083 BC1F5 progenies derived from an elite hybrid restorer “Lata-3” and 13 diverse donor accessions were evaluated for yield and agronomic traits under contrasting soil P conditions in Mali in 2013. A subset of 298 progenies were further tested under low-P (LP) and high-P (HP) conditions in 2014 and 2015. Significant genetic variation for grain yield was observed under LP and HP conditions. Selection for grain yield under LP conditions was feasible and more efficient than the indirect selection under HP in all three years of testing. Several of the BCNAM populations exhibited yields under LP conditions that were superior to the elite restorer line used as a recurrent parent. The BCNAM approach appears promising for diversifying the male parent pool with introgression of diverse materials using both adapted Malian breed and unadapted landrace material from distant geographic origins as donors.

Crop and varietal diversification are essential for African smallholder farmers to adapt to the complex and unprecedented challenges posed by climate change. Although African genebanks maintain seed collections of numerous crops, with thousands of varieties collected from their countries’ farmers, the direct use of these collections by farmers is very limited. Five African national genebanks therefore explored ways to strengthen farmers’ access to and use of these collections through a longer-term collaborative process. The genebanks and their partners engaged with ‘Germplasm User Groups’ as a basis for facilitating sustained joint learning with farmers for use of conserved germplasm. The structure of these groups and the methods they used for identifying and testing germplasm accessions, although differing by country context, all enabled a diversity of farmers to learn about a wide range of germplasm under relevant field conditions. The large number of accessions that farmers selected, their diverse advantages and the requests by numerous farmer groups to continue exploring additional crops and varieties indicated the usefulness of these approaches. These experiences revealed the feasibility and unique roles and opportunities for national genebanks to facilitate farmers’ direct use of the diversity conserved in their crop collections. National genebanks thus have unique responsibilities for adapting their operating procedures and partnering with research and development practitioners to facilitate farmers’ discovery and use of their conserved crop diversity.