This species was probably derived in cultivation from Setaria viridis[].

Common Name: Foxtail Millet

General Information

Setaria italica is a fast-growing, erect, clump-forming annual grass with few, if any, side branches; it can grow from 30 - 150cm tall. The root system is dense, with thin wiry adventitious roots[].
The plant is one of the oldest cultivated crops, being in cultivation from about 5,000 BC in India and China , from where cultivation has spread to many areas of the world[, ]. It is still often cultivated for its edible seed in tropical to warm temperate areas[, ]. It also has a range of local medicinal uses. The plant is mainly grown for home consumption, but is also traded internationally on a small scale[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

, ,

Range

?East Asia - eastern China. The plant was derived through cultivation and its origin is obscure.

Habitat

Not known in a truly wild situation.

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Annual
Height	0.75 m
Pollinators	Wind
Cultivation Status	Cultivated

Cultivation Details

Setaria italica is a plant of the tmperate and subtropical zones, amenable to cultivation in the tropics where it is found at elevations up to 2,000 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 16 - 26°c, but can tolerate 5 - 35°c[]. It is intolerant of frost[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 500 - 700mm, but tolerates 300 - 4,000mm[].
Grows best in a sunny position[, ]. Succeeds in any well-drained soil from light sands to heavy clays, preferring fertile conditions[, ]. Established plants have a deep root system and are very drought resistant[, , ]. Prefers a pH in the range 6 - 6.8, tolerating 5.5 - 8.3[].
Plants can mature a crop in 60 - 120 days from sowing the seed, depending on conditions and variety[].
Seed yields of 800 - 900 kilos per hectare can be attained from rain-fed crops; this has been increased to 1,800 kilo in China with selected forms and a rainfall of less 900mms[, ]. Experimental yields of 11 tonnes per hectare have been obtained with irrigation[].
There are many named varieties[, ].

Edible Uses

Seed - cooked[, , ]. It can be eaten as a sweet or savoury food in all the ways that rice is used, or ground into a flour and made into porridge, cakes, puddings etc[, , ]. It is considered a nutritious food and is often recommended for the elderly and for pregnant women[]. The seed can also be sprouted before it is used, when it will become somewhat sweeter[]. Most cultivars are non-glutinous and are thus suitable for the diet of people with coeliac disease[]. A nutritional analysis is available[].

Medicinal

The germinated seed of yellow-seeded cultivars is astringent, digestive, emollient and stomachic[, , ]. It is used in the treatment of dyspepsia, poor digestion and food stagnancy in the abdomen[].
White seeds are refrigerant and used in the treatment of cholera and fever[].
Green seeds are diuretic and strengthening to virility[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The plant can be sown in contour strips for erosion control[].

Other Uses

The straw is used for thatching and bedding in places such as India[].

The bran contains up to 9% oil and can be used for oil extraction[].

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. Germination is usually quick and good. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow them on fast. Plant them out in late spring, after the last expected frosts. Whilst this is fine for small quantities, it would be an extremely labour intensive method if larger amounts were to be grown.
The seed can be sown in situ in the middle of spring though it is then later in coming into flower and may not ripen its seed in a cool summer.