Foxtail millet

Varieties

A number of varieties with high yield potential have been released for different states. The list of latest and popular varieties recommended for different states are given below

Season

• August – September in Tamil Nadu.
• July-August in Karnataka.
• First fortnight of July in Andhra Pradesh.
• Second and third week of July in Maharashtra.
• In Tamil Nadu, Kharif irrigated crop is planted from the beginning of June to end of July and summer irrigated crop in January
• Plains of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, middle of June.

Spacing

• 25-30 cm between rows and 8-10 cm between plants within a row

Seed rate

• 8-10 kg per ha for line sowing
• 15 kg per ha for broadcasting

Manuring and fertilization

Apply 5 tones of farm yard manure per hectare 2-3 weeks prior to sowing. Fertilizer required for different states is as follows

Apply entire quantity of phosphorus and half of nitrogen at sowing and remaining half of nitrogen at 30 days after sowing.

Weed control

• Two inter cultivations and one hand weeding in line sowing
• Two hand weeding in broadcasted crop

Cropping systems

Inter cropping

Andhra Pradesh :

• Foxtail millet+ ground nut (2:1 ratio)
• Foxtail millet + cotton (5:1 ratio) - Rayalseema regions.
• Finger millet + pigeon pea in 5:1 row ratio.

Relay cropping

Andhra Pradesh: If monsoon is early, sow foxtail millet at 45 cm row spacing and introduce Rabi jowar as relay crop when foxtail millet is nearing maturity.

Sequence cropping

Foxtail millet-mustard, foxtail millet-green gram, foxtail millet-pigeon pea and foxtail millet sunflower are profitable than one crop of foxtail millet.

Diseases

Blast (Pyricularia setariae), Brown spot (Helmithosporium setariae), Rust (Uromyces setariae) appear on the foliage.

Control: Spraying Mancozeb (0.2%) and warrant a spray only if they appear at  the early stages of crop growth.

Grain Smut (Ustilago crameri)

Control : Treating the seeds with Carboxin or Carbendazim @ 2g/kg

Green ear (Sclerospora graminicola)

Control : Treating the seeds with Ridomil Mz @ 2g/kg.Rouging out the affected plants

Pests

Army worm, cut worm and leaf scrapping beetle appear occasionally in serious form. In certain areas shootfly occur, although it is not a regular pest.

Control: When pests are noticed, take up dusting of Endosulfan 4% @ 30kg/ha or Malathion 5% @ 8-10 kg/ha.

Source : Indian Institute of Millets Research