23/12/2019 Setaria italica - Useful Tropical Plants

Setaria italica (L.) P.Beauv. Poaceae

This species was probably derived in cultivation from Setaria viridis[266].

+ Synonyms

Common Name: Foxtail Millet

General Information
Foxtail millet is a fast-growing, erect, clump-forming
annual grass with few, if any, side branches; it can grow
from 30 - 150cm tall. The root system is dense, with thin
wiry adventitious roots[299].
The plant is one of the oldest cultivated crops, being in
cultivation from about 5,000 BC in India and China , from
where cultivation has spread to many areas of the
world[299, 375]. It is still often cultivated for its edible
seed in tropical to warm temperate areas[46, 183]. It also
has a range of local medicinal uses. The plant is mainly
grown for home consumption, but is also traded
internationally on a small scale[299].

Known Hazards
None known

Cultivated plant in Oslo botanical garden, Oslo, Norway

Botanical References Photograph by: Daderot
Public domain
17, 74, 200

Range
Asia? The plant was derived through cultivation and its
origin is obscure.

Habitat
Not known in a truly wild situation.

Properties

Edibility Rating

Medicinal Rating
Habit Annual
Height 0.75 m
Pollinators Wind
Cultivation Status Cultivated

Cultivation Details
A plant of the tmperate and subtropical zones, amenable to cultivation in the tropics where it is found at elevations up to
2,000 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 16 - 26°c, but can tolerate 5
- 35°c[418]. It is intolerant of frost[375]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 500 - 700mm, but tolerates 300 -
4,000mm[418].
Grows best in a sunny position[162, 299]. Succeeds in any well-drained soil from light sands to heavy clays, preferring
fertile conditions[162, 299]. Established plants have a deep root system and are very drought resistant[57, 61, 375].
Prefers a pH in the range 6 - 6.8, tolerating 5.5 - 8.3[418].
Plants can mature a crop in 60 - 120 days from sowing the seed, depending on conditions and variety[418].
Seed yields of 800 - 900 kilos per hectare can be attained from rain-fed crops; this has been increased to 1,800 kilo in

tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Setaria+italica 1/3
23/12/2019 Setaria italica - Useful Tropical Plants

China with selected forms and a rainfall of less 900mms[299, 375]. Experimental yields of 11 tonnes per hectare have
been obtained with irrigation[299].
There are many named varieties[46, 183].

Edible Uses
Seed - cooked[2, 34, 46]. It can be eaten as a sweet or savoury food in all the ways that rice is used, or ground into a flour
and made into porridge, cakes, puddings etc[105, 183, 418]. It is considered a nutritious food and is often recommended
for the elderly and for pregnant women[299]. The seed can also be sprouted before it is used, when it will become
somewhat sweeter[K]. Most cultivars are non-glutinous and are thus suitable for the diet of people with coeliac
disease[299]. A nutritional analysis is available[218].

Medicinal
The germinated seed of yellow-seeded cultivars is astringent, digestive, emollient and stomachic[176, 178, 218]. It is used
in the treatment of dyspepsia, poor digestion and food stagnancy in the abdomen[176].
White seeds are refrigerant and used in the treatment of cholera and fever[218].
Green seeds are diuretic and strengthening to virility[218].

Agroforestry Uses:
The plant can be sown in contour strips for erosion control[299].

Other Uses
The straw is used for thatching and bedding in places such as India[299].

The bran contains up to 9% oil and can be used for oil extraction[299].

Propagation
Seed - it can be sown in situ. Seeds can be difficult to germinate in heavy clay soils[375].

Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2019-12-23. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?
id=Setaria+italica>

Add a Comment:
If you have any useful information about this plant, please leave a comment. Comments have to be approved before they
are shown here.

Name:

Email(Private):

Message:

Captcha: 10 times itself is?

Submit

Last update on 2019-06-13: Now containing 11906 plants.

tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Setaria+italica 2/3
23/12/2019 Setaria italica - Useful Tropical Plants

Useful Tropical Plants Database 2014 by Ken Fern, web interface by Ajna Fern with help from
Richard Morris.
The database and code is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-
ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Setaria+italica 3/3