Plant · P-688

Proso Millet

Panicum miliaceum

Proso millet is one of the oldest cultivated cereals, likely grown before wheat, and it still earns its keep as the fastest grain crop available - it can go from seed to harvest in as little as forty-five days. The gluten-free grain is cooked whole or ground for bread and pasta, and doubles as feed for poultry, pigs and cattle once its hard seed coat is cracked; it is also a major birdseed. It thrives on very little water and tolerates poor, shallow soil that would fail most other crops, but the ripening panicle sheds seed unevenly, so a stand left too long before cutting will self-sow heavily into whatever follows it.