Foxtail Millet ((Paniceae) Setaria italica)
Foxtail millet is a grass that grows to 120-150 cm tall. The small seeds are in a long cigar-shaped panicle that is 10-25 cm long. The grains are about 2 mm in diameter and are surrounded by thin glumes that must be removed by threshing. Some varieties have hairy panicles, others non-hairy. The colour can vary.
The grains are used as food or fodder.
Foxtail millet is not grown commercially in northern Europe, but in southern Europe it is. However, it is possible to grow it here. In small scale growing it is useful for late sowings of patches where the planned crop for some reason did not survive.
Foxtail millet is also used as an ornamental crop.
Foxtail millet is drought tolerant. However, it is frost tender and can thus not be sown too early. Often it will self-seed in your garden, since the seeds survive the winter.
Varieties
