Millet
Millet: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar
Proso millet, Panicum miliaceum, is an annual cereal in the grass family, Poaceae. The word millet covers several species grown for their small grains, but this entry specifically concerns proso millet. It differs from foxtail millet, Setaria italica, and from pearl millet. This diversity explains why the common name alone cannot describe a cereal and all its characteristics. Plant size and grain colour depend on the variety, rather than following one pattern shared by every crop called millet.Its outline is that of a grass with upright stems and elongated leaves. The grains develop in a branched flower head called a panicle. Depending on the cultivated form, this may be more open or compact, upright or drooping. It gives the plant a different appearance from wheat, whose grains are carried in an ear. The many small seeds and visible branches offer something to observe in a garden beyond the production of…
