''Spodiopogon formosanus'' or the Taiwan oil millet ( zh, t=臺灣油芒, p=táiwān yóumáng) (syn.: ''Eccoilopus formosanus'') is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of perennial grass in the family Poaceae. It is endemic to

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. It is traditionally grown as a

cereal crop A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more food en ...

by the

Taiwanese aborigines Taiwanese may refer to: * Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien * Something from or related to Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China ...

. Its wild progenitor is most likely '' Spodiopogon cotulifer'', which is found in Taiwan and also in mainland China. For most of the 20th century, the Taiwan oil millet had been misidentified as ''

Echinochloa esculenta ''Echinochloa esculenta'' is a species of grass in the family Poaceae. It is referred to by the common names Japanese barnyard millet or Japanese millet, is a species of ''Echinochloa'' that is cultivated on a small scale in India, Japan, Chin ...

'' (the Japanese barnyard millet or ''hie'' 稗) until it was "rediscovered" by Dorian Fuller in the 2000s with the proper identification of specimens as ''Spodiopogon formosanus''.

Cultivation

In the Rukai village of Vedray (霧台 Wutai), the Paiwan village of Masilid, and the Bunun village of Tahun, the Taiwan oil millet is grown alongside other cereal crops such as

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

foxtail millet Foxtail millet, scientific name ''Setaria italica'' (synonym ''Panicum italicum'' L.), is an annual grass grown for human food. It is the second-most widely planted species of millet, and the most grown millet species in Asia. The oldest evide ...

, sorghum, and

Job's tears Job's tears (''Coix lacryma-jobi)'', also known as Adlay or Adlay millet, is a tall grain-bearing perennial tropical plant of the family Poaceae (grass family). It is native to Southeast Asia and introduced to Northern China and India in remote ...

(and also

finger millet ''Eleusine coracana'', or finger millet, also known as ragi in India, kodo in Nepal, is an annual herbaceous plant widely grown as a cereal crop in the arid and semiarid areas in Africa and Asia. It is a tetraploid and self-pollinating specie ...

and

proso millet ''Panicum miliaceum'' is a grain crop with many common names, including proso millet, broomcorn millet, common millet, hog millet, Kashfi millet, red millet, and white millet. Archaeobotanical evidence suggests millet was first domesticated abo ...

in Tahun). The Bunun, Rukai, and Paiwan peoples often sow

and Taiwan oil millet simultaneously from winter to early spring. Although foxtail millet is typically harvested during mid-summer, Taiwan oil millet is harvested in late autumn.

Common names

Common names for ''Spodiopogon formosanus'' in

Formosan languages The Formosan languages are a geographic grouping comprising the languages of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan, all of which are Austronesian. They do not form a single subfamily of Austronesian but rather nine separate subfamilies. The Taiwa ...

:Takei, Emiko (October 2013).
Millet Culture and Indigenous Cuisine in Taiwan
'. The 2013 International Conference on Chinese Food Culture, Kunming, Yunnan, China. * Amis (?): ''samuk'' * Bunun: ''diirh''; ''diil'' * Tsou: ''ihalumay'', ''hrome''; ''herome'' * Rukai: ''lhaomai''; ''larumai'', ''irome'' * Paiwan: ''rumay''; ''jumai'', ''lumai'', ''lyumai'' Common names from Yuasa (2001): * Saaroa: naumi * Kanakanabu: hrome Most of the lexical forms reconstruct to *Numay. It is also occasionally referred to as the Formosan beard grassHung, Katy Huiwen (December 21, 2020).
Indigenous note - The Forgotten Oil Millet of Taiwan
'. or Taiwan hill millet.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15502050 formosanus Endemic flora of Taiwan Plants described in 1904 Millets Cereals