''Panicum sumatrense'', known as little millet, is a species of millet in the family Poaceae.

Description

This species of cereal is similar in habit to the

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 ...

except that it is smaller. It is an annual

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent wood, woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennial plant, perennials, and nearly all Annual plant, annuals and Biennial plant, biennials. Definition ...

, which grows straight or with folded blades to a height of to . The leaves are linear, with the sometimes hairy laminae and membranous hairy ligules. The panicles are from in length with long awn. The grain is round and smooth, long.

Subspecies

There have been two subspecies described: *''Panicum sumatrense'' Roth ex Roem. & Schult. subsp. ''psilopodium'' (Trin.) Wet. *''Panicum sumatrense'' Roth ex Roem. & Schult. subsp. ''sumatrense''

Distribution and habitat

In the temperate zones of Asia: the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...

, China,

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both Geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The modern State (polity), states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. ...

and also in the tropics of the continent:

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...

and

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. It can withstand both drought and waterlogging. It can be cultivated up to 2000 m above sea level.

Common names

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

: Kutki, Shavan.

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

: Sama.

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

: Samai.

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...

: Gajro, Kuri.
Telugu : Samalu (సామలు).
Marathi : Sava, Halvi, Vari.
Oriya : Suan.

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

: Saame (ಸಾಮೆ).

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

: Chama (ചാമ).

Cultivation

The largest cultivation is in central India. Usually, it is planted using a

seed drill A seed drill is a device used in agriculture that sows seeds for crops by positioning them in the soil and burying them to a specific depth while being dragged by a tractor. This ensures that seeds will be distributed evenly. The seed drill sow ...

. It can also if necessary be planted spoiled. The green plant can also be used in part as cattle feed. The straw can be mixed with clay or cement be used in construction. The harvest yield is from 230 to 900 kg/ha.

Pests

Pests include the shoot fly '' Atherigona pulla'', which also affects

.Sathish, R., M. Manjunatha, and K. Rajashekarappa. 2017. Incidence of shoot fly, ''Atherigona pulla'' (Wiedrmann) on proso millet at different dates o sowing. ''J. Entomol. Zool. Stud.'' 5: 2000–2004. Other insect pests include: *shoot fly, '' Atherigona miliaceae'' *armyworms, '' Mythimna separata'' and ''

Spodoptera frugiperda The fall armyworm (''Spodoptera frugiperda'') is a species in the order Lepidoptera and one of the species of the fall armyworm moths distinguished by their larval life stage. The term "armyworm" can refer to several species, often describing the ...

'' ;Leaf feeders *caterpillars: '' Euproctis virguncula'', '' Amsacta moorei'', '' Amsacta albistriga'', and '' Amsacta lactinea'' *flea beetles: ''

Chaetocnema basalis file:Chaetocnema cf concinna - 2012-04-03.ogv, ''Chaetocnema'' cf ''concinna'' ''Chaetocnema'' is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. There are some 470 described species worldwide. Selected species References External lin ...

'', '' Chaetocnema indica'', and ''

Chaetocnema denticulata ''Chaetocnema denticulata'', the toothed flea beetle, is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Wes ...

'' *larvae of the leaf folder '' Cnaphalocrocis medinalis'' *grasshoppers: '' Chrotogonus hemipterus'', ''

Acrida exaltata ''Acrida exaltata'' is a species of grasshopper in the family Acrididae. It is a pest of sorghum ''Sorghum'' () is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for ...

'', ''

Aiolopus simulatrix ''Aiolopus simulatrix'' is a species of locust Locusts (derived from the Vulgar Latin ''locusta'', meaning grasshopper) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects ...

'', and ''

Aiolopus tamulus ''Aiolopus'' is a genus of grasshopper belonging to the family Acrididae, subfamily Oedipodinae and tribe Epacromiini. Species can be found in Africa (including Madagascar), Europe and Asia - through to New Caledonia. Species The ''Orthoptera ...

'' ;Earhead feeders *bugs ''

Nezara viridula ''Nezara viridula'', commonly known as the southern green stink bug (USA), southern green shield bug (UK) or green vegetable bug (Australia and New Zealand), is a plant-feeding stink bug. Believed to have originated in Ethiopia, it can now be fo ...

'' and ''

Dolycoris indicus ''Dolycoris indicus'' is a species of true bug in the family Pentatomidae. It is a pest of millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human ...

'' ;Panicle pests *spotted stalk borer '' Chilo partellus'' ;Others *'' Nephotettix virescens'', ''

Nephotettix nigropictus ''Nephotettix nigropictus'' is a species of true bug in the family Cicadellidae. It is a pest of millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder an ...

'', and '' Nisia atrovenosa'' *sugarcane leafhopper, '' Pyrilla perpusilla'' *midge, ''

Orseolia ''Orseolia'' is a genus of flies belonging to the family Cecidomyiidae. The species of this genus are found in Southeastern Asia and Northern America. Species: *'' Orseolia andropogonis'' *'' Orseolia apludae'' *'' Orseolia bengalensis'' * ...

'' sp.

Archaeobotany

At the

Indus Valley civilisation The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form 2600 BCE to 1900& ...

sites of Harappa and

Farmana Farmana Khas or Daksh Khera is an archaeological site in Meham block of Rohtak district in northern Indian state of Haryana spread over 18.5 hectares. It is located near the village of Farmana Khas, about 15 kilometers from the Rohtak ...

, the millet assemblage was dominated by little millet. Over 10,000 grains of little millet were recovered at Harappa. At Harappa, little millet cultivation peaked at around 2600 BC, accounting for around 5% of the total cereal assemblage.

Preparation

Little millet is cooked like

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 ...

. Sometimes the millet is also milled and baked. The protein content of the grain is 7.7%.

Notes

References

* *W. Franke, (1985): ''Nutzpflanzenkunde''. Stuttgart. *H. Genaust: ''Etymologisches Wörterbuch der botanischen Pflanzennamen''. 3. Aufl., 701 S. Basel-Boston-Stuttgart, 1996. *V. H. Heywood: ''Blütenpflanzen der Welt''. Basel-Boston-Stuttgart, 1978 * ''This article is based on a translation of the corresponding article in the German Wikipedia.'' {{Taxonbar, from=Q1308043 sumatrense Millets Crops originating from Asia Grasses of Asia Flora of Sumatra Cereals