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Millet common name for various
species of plants belonging to different genera but all within the grass
family, and for their small-seeded grain, which is used to make porridge
and types of bread or as food for livestock and cage birds. Millet grows
in ears or heads on stalks that range from 0.3 to 3 m (1 to 10 ft) tall.
It is an important staple food in most of the former Soviet republics,
western Africa, and Asia, where it probably originated more than 5,000
years ago. Because it grows in less fertile soils, and resists drought,
it is widely cultivated in poorer agricultural areas. A number of species
also grow quickly, some in as little as a few weeks. Millets usually
contain less protein than wheat or
rye, and more protein than
rice.
Among the better-known millets is common millet, or proso, which is
grown as food in China, India, central and western Asia, and eastern
Europe, and as feed for poultry, wild birds, and livestock in the United
States. Foxtail or Italian millet is grown in temperate regions for
cereal and birdseed. Barnyard millet is one of the fastest-maturing
species, producing a crop six weeks after sowing. Millet, a general
category for several species of small grained cereal crops, is the worlds
seventh most important cereal grain.
Scientific classification: Millets belong to the
genera Echinochloa, Milium, Panicum, Pennisetum, and Setana
all within the family Poaceae (or Gramineae). Common
millet, or proso, is classified as Panicum miliaceum. Foxtail
or Italian millet is classified as Setana italica and barnyard
millet as Echinochloa frumentacea. Sorghum
make up the genus Sorghum in the family Poaceae (or Gramineae).