Reduction of leaf area in sorghum without tillers (uniculm sorghum) might result in conservation of water at early stages of growth and hence in stability of grain yield under dry conditions. In two experiments in south-east Queensland, Australia, tillers were removed by hand to examine the growth of uniculm sorghum. Tiller removal promoted root development at the flag leaf stage but significantly reduced shoot dry matter and lowered grain yield by about 20% in a wet season. The saving in soil water as a result of tiller removal was relatively small but statistically significant.