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Pennisetum glaucum
| Common name: |
Pearl Millet |
Family: |
Gramineae |
| Author: |
(L.)R.Br. |
Botanical references: |
74, 236, 266 |
| Synonyms: |
Pennisetum typhoideum (Rich.), Pennisetum americanum ((L.)Schum.) |
| Known Hazards: |
None known |
| Range: |
E. Asia - China. |
| Habitat: |
River banks in sandy soils, common as a weed[74]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
1 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 1 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Chaetochloa glauca[B,G,P]
Chaetochloa lutescens[B,P]
Chamaeraphis glauca[G]
Holcus spicatus[G]
P. leonis[G]
P. spicatum[G]
P. typhoides[B,G]
P. typhoides auct. non[P]
Panicum americanum[B,P]
Panicum glaucum[B,G,P]
Setaria glauca[B,G,P]
Setaria lutescens[B,P]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| American Fountaingrass [P], Nd [E], Pearl-millet [B], Petit-Mil [E], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
glaucum = glaucous
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA Plants Database |
|
Order: Cyperales. Renamed to Poaceae -- Grass family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
Egypt
Haiti Kenya
|
| Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds | From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia
, DEFRA Injurious Weeds | | Listed as noxious/invasive for: Colorado. |
Physical Characteristics
Annual growing to 3m. . It is in flower from September to October, and the seeds ripen from September to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind.
We rate it 1/5 for edibility and
1/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
It cannot grow in the shade.
It requires dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Cultivated Beds.Edible Uses
Seed.
Seed - raw or cooked. It can be used like rice in sweet or savoury
dishes, or can be ground into a powder and used as a flour for making bread,
porridge etc[74, 105, 183]. The grain is often fermented to make various
foods[183] The sweet tasting grains are eaten raw by children[183]. Very
nutritious[171].
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Appetizer
Skin Tonic.
The plant is appetiser and tonic[240]. It is useful in the treatment of
heart diseases[240].
The fruits have been rubbed on open facial pimples in order to get rid of
them[257].
Other Uses
None known
Cultivation details
Requires a light well-drained soil in a sunny position[162]. Succeeds
in dry infertile soils[160]. This species is the most drought-resistant of
all cereal crops[162].
Cultivated for its edible seed in tropical and sub-tropical areas[61, 142],
it is especially suited to regions with a short growing season[266]. It is a
more problematical crop in Britain, requiring a hot summer if it is to ripen
a good crop of seed. There are often not many seeds on the
inflorescence[160].
Propagation
Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to
handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in
early summer.
Suppliers
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
Web References
- [E] Ethnobotany Data
(common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
- [B] Data
(Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for Pennisetum americanum (a possible synonym).
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.
[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
[142] Brouk. B. Plants Consumed by Man. Academic Press 1975 ISBN 0-12-136450-x
Readable but not very comprehensive.
[160] Natural Food Institute, Wonder Crops. 1987.
Fascinating reading, this is an annual publication. Some reports do seem somewhat exaggerated though.
[162] Grounds. R. Ornamental Grasses. Christopher Helm 1989 ISBN 0-7470-1219-9
Cultivation details of many of the grasses and bamboos. Well illustrated.
[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.
[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
[236] Hitchcock. A. S. Manual of the Grasses of the United States Dover Publications. New York. 1971 ISBN 0-486-22717-0
A nice and comprehensive flora, though a bit dated. Good line drawings of each plant, plus a brief idea of the habitat and a few notes on plant uses. Not for the casual reader.
[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.
[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
[266] Flora of China 1994
On-line version of the Flora - an excellent resource giving basic info on habitat and some uses.
Readers Comments
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Plant information taken from the
Plants For A Future -
Species Database.
Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963 This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Pennisetum+glaucum
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Pennisetum+glaucum
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