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African millet. Legends, myths, symbolism, description, cultivation, methods of application

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Content

1. Photos, basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism
2. Genus, family, origin, range, chemical composition, economic importance
3. Botanical description, reference data, useful information, illustrations
4. Recipes for use in traditional medicine and cosmetology
5. Tips for growing, harvesting and storing

African millet, Pennisetum spicatum. Photos of the plant, basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism

Basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism

Sort by: Pennisetum

Family: Cereals (Poaceae)

Origin: Africa

Area: African millet grows in Africa, Asia and America

Chemical composition: The percentage of nutrients in 100 g of dry matter: proteins - 11,6-12,3 g, fats - 1,1-1,8 g, carbohydrates - 69,1-73,6 g, fiber - 2,2-2,6 .1,2 g, ash - 1,7-6 g. The plant also contains many vitamins and minerals, such as iron, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, vitamin BXNUMX and others.

Economic value: African millet is used as a fodder crop for livestock and poultry. Millet grains are used to make cereals, flour and much more. In some African and Asian countries, millet is used to make alcoholic beverages. In addition, millet is grown for landscaping and soil erosion control.

Legends and myths: In Chinese culture, African millet symbolizes longevity, health and happiness. In traditional Chinese medicine, millet is used to treat a variety of ailments, including boosting the immune system and reducing inflammation. In Indian culture, African millet is often used in religious ceremonies as well as in cooking. In some regions of India, it symbolizes prosperity, well-being and good luck.

African millet, Pennisetum spicatum. Description, illustrations of the plant

African millet, Pennisetum spicatum. Methods of application, origin of the plant, range, botanical description, cultivation

African millet (syn. Negro, barley, pearl millet, pennisetum, penicillaria, bajra) is one of the main food crops in the arid zones of Africa and Southeast Asia. Grain has a high nutritional value and is well stored. It contains 67-76% carbohydrates, 9-16% protein, 4-6% fat and 2-7% ash.

In terms of protein and fat quality, millet grain is superior to many other grain crops. Homemade beer, cereals and flour are made from grain. Groats are used to prepare sweet and dietary dishes. Cereals, cookies, unleavened bread are prepared from flour, or it is added to wheat (about 10%) when baking white bread. Millet grain is also used for fattening poultry and young animals, for which they make a mash that replaces whole milk.

The vegetative mass is used for fodder in the form of green grass, hay and silage. The use of millet for silage is convenient because the vegetative mass remains green for a long time, which allows you to extend the silage period by 20-25 days without reducing the quality of the silage. In some West African countries, millet is used as a green manure crop.

More than half of the acreage under African millet is located in Asia (India, Pakistan, China, the Republic of Korea, the countries of Western Asia). India ranks first in distribution (approximately 11-13 million hectares, or about 30% of world crops) and grain production.

In Africa, bajra is cultivated in the dry regions of Nigeria, Mali, Senegal, Niger, Sudan, Chad, Ghana, Guinea, Benin, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Kenya, etc. In America, Europe and Australia, the culture is grown in small areas for animal feed. The average grain yield across continents and countries is low - 0,6-0,7 t/ha. However, in India, hybrids are more productive, they give 1,5-2,5 tons, and when irrigated - up to 3-4 tons of grain per 1 ha.

African millet belongs to the genus Pennisetum, which has more than 100 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants. The main cultivated species is Pennisetum spicatum Koern. (syn. P. typhoides Stapf and Hubbard) comes from the African General Center. The history of culture has almost 2 thousand years. Cultivated in Africa and India, varieties of this species are characterized by great heterogeneity, which is associated with the difference in maturation of the female and male organs of flowers (protogyny) and the predominance of cross-pollination.

African millet is an annual upright, strongly bushy (from 2 to 40 shoots) cereal plant with a deep and powerful root system. The stems are green cylindrical, filled with paronchyma with convex pubescent nodes, from 0,5 to 4 m high. The leaf shape is typical for cereals, the surface is bare or pubescent, length is from 30 to 100 cm, width is 0,5-5 cm, sheaths are long, from above open.

The inflorescence is a terminal compact panicle of cylindrical shape, very dense, of various lengths (from 10 to 40 cm) and widths (from 0,5 to 4 cm). Some forms have pubescence in the form of hard short bristles. The panicle consists of a large number of small spikelets (from 0,8 to 3 thousand pieces) with 2 flowers - the lower male, usually sterile, and the upper bisexual. The fruit of millet is a small, ovoid-pointed caryopsis (weight of 1000 grains - 7-12 g) of white, yellow, gray or pale blue color with a large embryo.

African millet is characterized by very high heat resistance and undemanding in relation to water and soil conditions. It can be cultivated on poor and depleted soils in areas where rainfall is 250-300 mm per year, i.e., in conditions completely unsuitable for other tropical crops. However, in this case, good yields cannot be expected.

The optimum conditions for high crop productivity are a temperature level of 25-30°C with a minimum of 20°C during the flowering period. It is better if the days are hot, the nights are cool, precipitation is 600-700 mm per year, but less is acceptable with a favorable distribution. A good moisture supply is required during the period of sowing - seedlings, flowering - seed filling, limited during the tillering period, and the absence of precipitation during maturation. Strong winds are dangerous during the flowering period. They prevent pollination and reduce the graininess of the panicle. Faster flowering and maturation of grain occur under short day conditions.

The best soils are light loamy, rich, well-drained, with a neutral soil solution.

African millet in the tropics is traditionally grown together with other annual crops such as chickpeas, peanuts, mungos, and cotton. However, single-species crops are more productive and make it possible to cultivate highly productive varieties and hybrids using intensive agricultural practices.

Early maturing varieties of millet (60-90 days) in West Africa are placed as a second crop after peanuts or cotton in cleared areas or after fallow and receive 2-3 grain crops per year. In crop rotations, later-ripening varieties of millet (100-150 days), which give only one crop per year, are placed after cowpea, peanut, woandzea, cotton, sesame. If millet is cultivated in a crop rotation for 2-3 years in a row on the same field, the soil is depleted, and after it it is necessary to place crops that are not demanding on soil fertility - cassava, peanuts, cowpea.

For sowing, shallow processing is done, a maximum of 10-15 cm, it is repeated until the topsoil is loose, even, without lumps and lumps. If the soil is damp, then it is necessary to cut the ridges for sowing. Sowing time is the beginning or middle of the rainy season for rainfed millet, for irrigated - the end of the rains. Sow at a depth of 2-3 cm.

Simultaneously with sowing or under the last tillage, it is recommended to apply 40-50 kg of phosphorus and potassium and 50-55 kg of nitrogen. This is half the dose of nitrogen: the second half is best applied in 2 top dressings 30 and 45 days after sowing. However, in most areas, mineral fertilizers are not applied. In peasant farms, millet is sown manually, spreading it evenly over the field (7-9 kg/ha) or planting it in nests (4-6 seeds per nest) on specially prepared rows or heaps of land.

Row sowing is carried out by seeders with wide (from 60 to 100 cm or more) row spacing, sown from 2 to 5 kg/ha. In India, dwarf hybrids are sown more densely, leaving row spacings from 22 to 30 cm. If necessary, seedlings are thinned out, achieving a sowing density of 30-40 thousand in the dry tropics, and 80-100 thousand plants per 1 ha in variable wet tropics.

In some countries of West Africa and states of India, millet is planted in the field with seedlings, which are grown for 20-30 days in special open nurseries and transplanted into the field 2-3 plants per nest. Side shoots of mature plants are sometimes used as seedlings.

Care of millet crops is simple: they do 2-3 loosening, manual weeding, especially at the beginning, when due to the slow growth of plants they are strongly drowned out by weeds. Tall crops spud. When cultivating in the dry season, from 2 to 4 irrigations are carried out along the furrows.

Harvesting, usually by hand, begins when the panicles are fully mature. If the varieties are very bushy, then the panicles are cut in several stages. Panicle threshing by hand or with the help of animals.

Authors: Baranov V.D., Ustimenko G.V.

African millet, Pennisetum spicatum. Recipes for use in traditional medicine and cosmetology

Ethnoscience:

• Treatment of kidney disease: with kidney disease, a decoction of millet roots helps. To prepare a decoction, pour 1 tablespoon of crushed millet roots with 1 cup of boiling water and let it brew for 10-15 minutes. Take 1 glass of decoction throughout the day.
• Toothache treatment: to eliminate toothache, use a tincture of millet leaves. To prepare the tincture, pour 1 tablespoon of crushed millet leaves into 1 cup of boiling water and let it steep for 10-15 minutes. Rinse your mouth with tincture several times a day.
• Headache treatment: tincture of millet leaves helps with headaches and migraines. To prepare the tincture, pour 1 tablespoon of crushed millet leaves into 1 cup of boiling water and let it steep for 10-15 minutes. Take 1 glass of tincture throughout the day.
• Treatment for insomnia: tincture of millet seeds helps with insomnia. To prepare the tincture, pour 1 tablespoon of crushed millet seeds into 1 cup of boiling water and let steep for 10-15 minutes. Take 1 glass of tincture before bed.
• Treatment for diarrhea: a decoction of dried millet leaves helps with diarrhea. To prepare a decoction, pour 1 tablespoon of dried millet leaves with 1 cup of boiling water and let it brew for 10-15 minutes. Take 1 glass of decoction several times a day.

Cosmetology:

• Mask for the face: Mix 1 tablespoon of millet seed flour with enough water to make a thick paste. Apply this paste on your face and let it dry for 10-15 minutes, then wash off with warm water. This mask will help improve skin texture and hydrate it.
• Hair Care Oil: millet seed oil helps to strengthen hair and promote hair growth. Add a few drops of oil to your regular hair care routine to improve hair health.
• Body care oil: Millet seed oil is rich in vitamin E, which helps hydrate the skin and protect it from free radicals. Add a few drops of oil to your skin care routine to improve skin condition.
• Body Scrub: Mix 1 tablespoon of millet seed flour with enough honey to make a thick paste. Massage this paste onto the skin of the body, then rinse with warm water. This scrub will help remove dead skin cells and make it smoother and softer.
• Hand cream: Millet seed oil can be used to care for the skin of the hands, especially with dryness and flaking. Mix millet seed oil with coconut oil and apply to your hands several times a day.

Attention! Before use, consult with a specialist!

African millet, Pennisetum spicatum. Tips for growing, harvesting and storing

African millet, also known as Pennisetum glaucum, is a herbaceous plant that is widely used as a crop and livestock feed.

Tips for growing, harvesting and storing African millet:

Cultivation:

• African millet is easiest to grow in warm and dry climates.
• The plant prefers fertile soils with good drainage capacity.
• Seeds can be sown after the last frost or when the soil warms up to 18-20 °C.
• Plants need to be watered in the absence of sufficient rainfall.
• African millet plants need to be pruned before harvest.

Workpiece:

• African millet is harvested when the grains are fully ripe and have begun to crumble.
• The collected brushes with grains must be dried.
• Then the grains must be removed from the brushes, cleaned of debris and fallen leaves, and dried well in the sun.
• Beans should be stored in dry containers at a temperature not exceeding 15 °C.

Storage:

• African millet grain can be stored for several years.
• Beans should be stored in a cool, dry and well-ventilated place in containers with tight-fitting lids.

African millet is a valuable source of nutrients such as proteins, carbohydrates and vitamins.

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