MILLETS. 185 



it may easily be distinguished from other foxtail 

 millets after the earing stage. Golden wonder 

 millet is a great seed producer but it is probably 

 less valuable as a soiling food than the other varieties 

 of the foxtail class. 



The barn yard miUets include the varieties de- 

 rived from the common barn yard grass (Panicuiti 

 crus-galli). The African millets are also included 

 in this class. They are characterized by an abundant 

 growth, but are somewhat coarse in character 

 The broom corn millets are rather grown for the 

 grain they produce than to provide soiling food, but 

 they also may be m.ade to furnish soiling food. 

 The pearl millets are but little grown as yet in this 

 country. Some of the varieties produce an abun- 

 dant growth, but they are not considered so palatable 

 as cultivated millets of the foxtail class. They have 

 not been much introduced as yet into American 

 agriculture, hence little can be said as to their adapta- 

 tion and value. But one variety of this group will 

 be considered in Chapter XIII, when discussing 

 plants whose value in providing soiling food has not 

 been fully demonstrated. 



Distribution. — Few plants grown as food for 

 live stock on this continent are of wider distribu- 

 tion than millet. Since it can be sufficiently ad- 

 vanced in growth for being cut as soiling food in 

 from fifty to ninety days from -the date of sowing, 

 there are but few localities in the United States in 

 which it ma)^ not be grown with entire success. 

 And since it is in a pre-eminent degree a plant of 

 the sun, the climatic conditions least favorable to its 

 growth in our country will probably be found in 



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