Limelight foxtail millet
$4.00 – $8.00
(Setaria italica)
Limelight is a foxtail millet, so named because – to the imaginitive mind? – the seedheads resemble a fox’s tail. Native to China, it has larger leaves and stems than most grains we grow here, and much larger seedheads; plants are 3-4’/1-1.3 m tall with seedheads 8-12”/20-30 cm long! Highly ornamental grain is very popular with the birds, so keep an eye out for them as it nears maturity. To protect our planting, we tied pieces of aluminum cans to twine and hung them over the crop when we first saw sparrows arrive; that seemed to work.
Foxtail millet has hulls, which need to be removed before eating. We are still figuring out how to do this; our most successful attempt (about 70% dehulled) was to soak the seed and then run it in a food processor. Millet grain is quite bland compared to wheat or corn, and so would probably taste best paired with strongly-flavoured foods.
125 days to maturity.
Plant once soil is warm, a week or two after the average last frost (about the same time as common beans and amaranth). Sow seeds ¼” deep, 6” apart in rows 8” apart. Millet likes heat. Bird like millet; when the heads near maturity, pay close attention, and take precautions if you observe the birds beginning to feast. Seedheads can be harvested after frost kills the plants and dried further if necessary before threshing, which is easily accomplished by treading on them.