Millet Seed

Historical Perspective and distribution.
It is present in the archaeological record of African agriculture at the beginning of Ethiopia, dating back 5,000 years, and it probably originated somewhere in what is now Uganda (National Research Council, 1996) . This is an important staple crop in many parts of Africa and has been cultivated in eastern and southern Africa since the early Iron Age. Before maize was introduced it was the staple of the Southern African region.
E. coracana is found in warm temperate regions of the world from Africa to Japan and Australia. It is probably the most important weed in cultivated land in southern Africa because of its exceptionally strong root system which makes it difficult to control mechanically. There is also a weed in many other parts of the world, like North America. In Africa, the wild form (E. coracana subsp. Africana) is considered a weed, where the cultivated form (E. coracana subsp. Coracana) is cultivated and is especially problematic because they are so similar appearance.
Harvesting
Finger millet is leafy grasses that grows to a height of 2-6 cm. The leaves are shiny, strongly keeled and difficult to break and 2-5 cm long and 6-10 mm wide. The leaves and stems are usually green. It has an exceptionally strong root system and it is difficult to leave the earth by hand (Van Wyk & Van Oudtshoorn 1999). The stems and leaf sheaths are conspicuously flattened. The ligule is fringed membrane. Inflorescence spikes as main branches are open or have been contracted and are digitate or sub-digitate. Spikelets are 5-8 mm long and 3-4 mm wide.
There are two subspecies of pearl millet, the wild form (E. coracana subsp. Africana) and a cultivated form thereunder (E. coracana subsp. Coracana). African finger millet Wild (E. coracana subsp. africana) is similar to grass goose Indian (E. indica) and may be confused with it, but it has smaller spikelets and oblong, not rounded grains. Eleusine seeds are unusual in that the outer layer (pericarp) is not fused and can be easily removed from the seed coat below. (Van Wyk and Gericke, 2000).
The crop is usually grown in traditional farming systems with low inputs and low productivity. There is a tendency to replace the millet with more productive crops such as corn or rice in more intensive systems. However, millet has unique traits that can be exploited for food security in underdeveloped countries like Malawi. These include:
1. Millets are generally mature faster, which should enable them to adapt to other systems of intensive cultivation. Fast maturing millet could be used as a relay for the capture or culture in combination with other, slower maturing crops.

2. rapid multiplication of seed is usually a relatively simple matter and seed costs are low. small millet seeds generally store well for long periods, ensuring a continued food supply during the dry season or when there is a bad harvest.

3. The small millet seeds often require less cooking or preparation time. This may be a factor more important when women participate in more productive farming systems and have less time to devote to food preparation.

4. There are many ways of treating millet in traditional preparations and news. This may be a factor in increasing market demand for millet.

5. There are many marginal or difficult situations in which certain species of millets good results. Some breeds, for example, are tolerant to acid soils and waterlogged, while others can tolerate drought and saline soils. Because many types of millet are fast maturing, they can prod.