Renewable energies can have a very important role in today’s energy management in the future. Bioenergetics could be one of the perspectivic sectors of renewable energy in Hungary, given that there is a rather significant potential of bioenergy in the country. The objectives set by the European Union necessitate the development of this sector. Furthermore, determining the plant breeding objections could be of great significance. Seven silo sorghum hybrid combinations were evaluated for the purpose of obtaining a quantitative analysis of their performance. In the experiment, the female component of the hybrids were identical, while the male lines were from different branches. During the examinations, the standard hybrid was a state acknowledged hybrid authorised for public production, whose female line was the same as the female branch in the experiment.

The examinations aimed at the height, biomass yield and stem moisture content of the test hybrids, as well as the length of the growing season and the sugar content of the crops, which were supplemented with the morphological examinations for the purpose of revealing differences in their organism. Cross-breedings were performed in 2012 and the experiment was established in the Karcag Research Institute of the Centre for Agricultural Sciences in the University of Debrecen in 2013.

The average moisture content was between 71.25–75.25% in the stem and the average height was between 180–190 cm. The highest yield was produced by the H3 hybrid in the case of an average biomass yield of 7.16 kg m-2, while the highest sugar content was measured in H3 and H5 hybrids, showing higher values than that of the standard hybrid.

Keywords: silo sorghum, plant breeding, hybrids, bioenergy