The following points highlights the six important types of millets. The types are: 1. Fingermillet 2. Foxtailmillet 3. Prosomillet 4. Barnyardmillet 5. Littlemillet 6. Kodomillet.
1. Fingermillet:
Fingermillet (Eleusine coracana) also known in English as birdsfoot, coracana and African millet is known as ragi in south India, is cultivated for human food in Africa and southern Asia. Among the millets, on global basis, it ranks fourth after pearlmillet, foxtailmillet and prosomillet.
In India, fingermillet is the sixth important cereal crop after rice, wheat, maize, sorghum and pearlimillet, fourth important coarse grain cereals after maize, sorghum and pearlmillet and first important crop among small millets.
Early botanists suggest a probable Indian origin of fingermillet. Other botanists in recent times have favoured the African origin or believe that it originated both in Africa and India.
Regions of the world where fingermillet is most intensively grown are namely two: regions immediately surrounding Lake Victoria in east Africa and south India. These regions account for nearly three-fourths of the words’ production. In India, southeast and central Karnataka and the adjoining districts in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh produce three-fourths of India’s fingermillet.
2. Foxtailmillet:
Foxtailmillet (Setaria italica), also called as Italianmillet and setaria (korra in Telugu) has been cultivated in China since the Neolithic times, when it apparently formed the staple food of population in much of the north, is still important in north China today.
According to the year book of Chinese Agriculture, the area under foxtailmillet was 4 M ha in 1983. However, since 1983, area under the crop has declined steadily to 2.5 M ha in the recent past. In spite of decline in area, China still ranks first in foxtailmillet production in the word (4.6 M t) with productivity around 1.8 t ha-1. Total foxtailmillet production in the word is around 6 M t. Korea, Japan, Afghanistan, Syria, South Africa and India are the other foxtailmillet producing countries globally.
In India, foxtailmillet is cultivated in an area of 1.2 M ha with a production of 0.57 M t and yield 0.467 t ha-1 (2004-05). Madhya Pradesh accounts for largest area (0.41 M ha) and highest production (0.13 M t). Chattishgarh with 0.25 M ha ranks second in the area. Uttaranchal with 1.2 t ha-1 ranks first in the productivity followed by Arunachal Pradesh 0.957 t ha-1.
Foxtailmillet is well adapted to temperate, subtropical and tropical Asia. It was domesticated in China 5000 years back. Foxtailmillet spread to Europe and India as a cereal soon after its domestication. It can be grown on altitudes ranging from zero to 1800 m above mean sea level as in foot hills of Himalayas and requires well distributed rainfall from 150 to 350 mm.
It requires well drained soils of medium texture with a pH of 5 to 8. It is essentially dryland crop on marginal and sub-marginal lands although the world. The area under foxtailmillet in India has come down by more than half during 1990s mainly due to introduction of more remunerative sunflower and soybean crops in black soils. However, it is still grown to meet the domestic needs of rural people in the traditional foxtailmillet growing areas.
3. Prosomillet:
Prosomillet (Panicum miliaceum) is a quick growing crop, particularly suited to a dry continental climate. It is known under the name proso in USSR. The common English names of this millet are commonmillet, hogmillet and broomcorn millet. The progenitor of prosomillet is native of Manchuria. It was introduced into Europe as a cereal at least 3000 years ago. In India, it is known as chena or barri in Hindi, baragu in Kannada and variga in Telugu.
It is widely grown in USSR, central Asia, Arabia, Syria, Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan, constituting a staple food. Global area under this millet is about 10 M ha with a production around 5 M t annually. The USSR accounts for about 50 per cent of the area and production in the world followed by China with an area of 1.5 M ha and production 1.6 M t.
In India, it is grown in about 1.0 M ha with a production of 0.5 M t annually. Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are the principal states of its cultivation in India.
Prosomillet is quick growing grain crop, often grown during emergencies, famines or when sowings for other crops is abnormally delayed. The crop is exclusively grown unirrigated as a late monsoon crop on poor soils. However, very rarely it is cultivated as an irrigated crop from March to June in remote areas of Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.
Prosomillet is cultivated on light shallow red soils and relatively sandy soils. It is seldom grown on deep black soils. Prosomillet seed is sown on well prepared seedbed if monsoon is delayed for the usual crops. If the land is exclusively meant for prosomillet, one or two ploughings are given followed by a harrowing. Usual sowing time is September-October.
The seed is usually sown by drilling with a row spacing of 22.5 to 30 cm to facilitate intercultivation with local implements. When the area to be covered is small (less than one ha), the seed is, generally, broadcasted. Seed rate is 10 kg ha-1 both for drilling and broadcasting.
After sowing, the seed is cover by working a brush harrow or a light wooden plank drawn by animals. One or two intercultivation are given within 30 days after sowing followed by a hand weeding.
Many local varieties with duration from 60-90 days are available for general cultivation.
Recommended varieties for prosomillet growing states are given below:
AP: Nagarjuna, Sagar.
Bihar: BR 7.
Jarkhand: BR 7.
Karnataka: GPUP 8, GPUP 21.
TN: K 2, Co 2, Co 3, Co 4, GPUP 21.
UP: Bhavana.
Uttaranchal. GPUP 21, K 1.
The crop rarely receives any fertiliser. Bulky organic manures like FYM and compost are also not applied if the land is actually intended for prosomillet. However, when the land is prepared, keeping in view other crops and prosomillet is sown due to abnormal delay in monsoon, the crop utilise the already applied manure.
The crop comes to harvest within 90 days after seeding. A delay in harvest until all the grain has dried sufficiently for harvest leads to considerable loss due to shattering. Harvesting, therefore, should start when the lower part of the panicle is still green. The crop is uprooted or cut close to the ground, dried and threshed under the feet of cattle. Under rainfed conditions, grain yields range from 0.4-to 0.5 t ha-1 with 1.0 to 1.5 t ha-1 of straw.
Dehusked grain is cooked like rice or ground into flour and eaten as porridge or pudding. Mixed with wheat at a ratio of 4:1, it can substitute for wheat alone.
4. Barnyardmillet:
Two species of Echinochloa are grown as cereals. Echinochloa crusgalli is native to temperate Eurasia and was domesticated is Japan some 4000 years ago. Hence, it is also known as Japanese barnyardmillet. Echinochloa colona is widely distributed in the tropics and subtropics of Old World. It was domesticated in India where it is grown as cereal, especially in Kashmir and Sikkim. It is known as smalu in Telugu, samai in Tamil and banti in Marathi.
Cultivated plants of Echinochloa colona are erect or geniculiate, ascending, often tufted, annual and up to 2 m tall. Culms are slender to robust. Slender plants are decumbent with the culms strongly branched and rooting from lower nodes. Stout plants are erect with a few culms and branching from upper nodes. It remains as an important cereal only in tropics and subtropics of India.
It is grown in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Bihar. It can be grown up to an altitude of 2000 m in Himalayas. It is very drought resistant. However, it can withstand waterlogging even for a couple of weeks. It is frequently used in Egypt as a reclamation crop on lands that are too saline for rice. It is the quickest growing of all millets maturing in about 45 days, if moisture and temperature are favorable for growth and development.
Recommended barnyardmillet varieties for different states are given below:
AP: VL 181, VL 172, Madira 207.
Bihar: VL 181, RAU 11.
Jarkhand: VL 181.VL 172.
Gujarat: VL 181.
Karnataka: VL 181, Sushrutha.
Maharashtra: VL 181, VL Madira 207.
MP: VL 181, VL 172, VL Madira 207.
Chattishgarh: VL 172, VL 181.
TN: VL 181, VL Madira 207.
UP: Kanchana.
Uttaranchal: VL 172, VL 181, PRJ 1.
The crop is mostly confined to light soils which are ploughed twice before sowing the seed. Usual sowing time for kharif crop is June and for rabi crop October. A seed rate of 8 kg ha-1 is adequate both for drilling and broadcasting. A row spacing of 30 cm can facilitate intercultivation for weed control.
Occasionally, seedlings are transplanted as in the case of rice in some parts of Maharashtra on black cotton soils. The crop will not receive bulky organic manures or fertilisers. It is usually grown as sole crop. Mixed cropping with cotton, pegionpea or short duration pulse crops is also practiced.
When the crop is ripe, it is cut and left in the field for two to three days for drying before stacking in the field. Threshing under the feet of cattle is usually after 3 to 4 weeks after stacking. On an average, the grain yield is about 400 kg ha-1 and that of straw around 1.0 t ha-1. The dehusked grain can be cooked like rice or made into flour for porridge or chapaties.
5. Littlemillet:
Littlemillet (Panicum sumatrense) is widely cultivated as a cereal across India, Nepal and western Burma. It is particularly important in Eastern Ghats of India, where it forms an important part of tribal agriculture. It is called as samalu in Telugu, save in Kannada, samai in Tamil and shavan in Hindi.
The species is divided into subspecies P.sumatrense to include cultivated littlemillet and subspecies P.silopodium to include its wild progenitor. It is grown on a limited scale as poor mans crop capable of withstanding both drought and waterlogging. It is a quick growing crop of three months duration grown under conditions of low rainfall in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka. The crops flowers in 50-75 days and matures in 90-110 days.
Recommended littlemillet varieties for different states are given below:
AP: TNAU 63.
Bihar: Birsa Gundli 1, TNAU 63.
Jarkhand: BC 1, TNAU 63.
Gujarat: TNAU 63.
Karnataka: TNAU 63, Sukshema.
MP: JK 8, OLM 36.
Chattisgarh: JK 8, OLM 36.
Orissa: Birsa Gandhi 1, TNAU 63, OLM 203, OLM 36.
TN: Co 2, Paiyur 2, TNAU 63.
It is a crop of rainy season from July to October. Land is well prepared for crops like sorghum, pearlmillet or fingermillet. If rains are not received in time for these crops, littlemillet is grown on these will prepared land. The seed is sown by drilling with a row spacing of 22.5 to 30.0 cm or broadcast using a seed rate of 10 kg ha-1.
The seed is covered with blade harrow. The crop will not receive either bulky organic manure or fertilisers. Except one or two intercultivations with local blade harrows, there will not be any after cultivation including plant protection measures.
The crop is harvested by pulling out the plants and the sheaves are allowed to sun dry for a day and staked for a couple of weeks before threshing by trampling under the feet of cattle. The grain yield is around 400 kg ha-1.
6. Kodomillet:
Kodomillet (Paspalum serobiculatum) known as arekalu in Telugu, haraka in Kannada, varagu in Tamil and kadra in Hindi, is widely distributed in damp habitats across the Old Word tropics. It is also harvested as wild cereal in West Africa and in India. The species was domesticated in India about 3000 years ago.
It is grown in India from Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the south to Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh in the north and West Bengal in the east. Most common kodomillet is characterised by racemes with the spikelets arranged in two rows on one side of a flattened rachis.
Kodomillet is the coarsest among the food grains and also remarkably drought resistant. In India, it is grown mostly in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra as rainfed crop. It occupies the land longer than any other dryland grain crop (5 to 6 months). The crop is of minor importance and only small areas are cultivated.
Kodomillet is usually grown as sole crop. However, there are instances of growing pigeonpea, horsegram or sesame as mixed crops. Popular traditional varieties are Haraka 1 in Karnataka and PS 1 in Tamil Nadu.
Recommended kodomillet varieties for different states are given below:
AP: Jawahar Kodo 439, Jawahar Kodo 62, GPUK 3.
Gujarat: GK 2, JK 48.
Karnataka: GPUK 3, RBK 155, JK 48.
Maharashtra: GPUK 3.
MP: JK 62, JK 48, RBK 155.
Chattisgarh: GPUK 3, JK 48.
TN: GPUK 3, KMV 20, JK 48.
UP: KK 2.
It is cultivated exclusively as rainfed crops on very poor and light soils and even on gravelly soils where no other crop can be cultivated. The field is prepared by ploughing twice or thrice with the receipt of rains. The seed is drilled or broadcasted in June-July, using a seed rate of 25 to 30 kg ha-1.
When drilled in solid rows, the row spacing varies from 22.5 to 30 cm to facilitate intercultivation using bullock drawn implements. In Tamil Nadu, it is also sown during September – October. There will not be any aftercultivation, except one or two intercultivations, up to maturity of the crop around early December.
On maturity, the crop is cut close to the ground, bundled and staked for a week and threshed by trampling under the feet of cattle. Grain yield ranges from 0.6 to 0.8 t ha-1 with a straw yield around 1.5 t ha-1. The straw is of very poor quality, which is not relished by cattle. Dehusked grain is usually cooked like rice and eaten along with vegetables. Production of kodomillet is limited to home needs of tribal farmers in remote areas.