Pearl Millet
Forage Production In North Dakota
R-1016, May 1991
Kevin K. Sedivec, Extension Rangeland Management Specialist
Blaine G. Schatz, Associate Agronomist, Carrington Research Center
The acreage of crops planted for annual forage production in North Dakota is minor but
increases dramatically at times of drought and when severe winter-kill of alfalfa occurs.
Crops such as pearl millet, foxtail millet, proso millet, oats, sudangrass, sorghum, and
sorghum-sudan hybrids can be planted as annual forages.
Pearl millet is a relatively new forage in the northern regions of the United States.
However, it has been utilized extensively as a high quality grazing forage in the southern
United States. It was introduced into South Dakota in the early 1980s and has received
favorable consideration as a forage crop in North Dakota recently
Description
Pearl millet (Pennisetum typhoides) is a tall, warm season, annual grass. It
originated in Africa and India where it was used for both forage and grain. It was
introduced into the United States in the 1850s and became established as a minor forage
crop in the southeastern and Gulf Coast states. Pearl millet is also referred to as
penicillaria, pencilaria, Mand's forage plant, cattail millet, bulrush millet, and candle
millet.
Pearl millet may grow 6 to 10 feet tall during conditions of high temperatures and
favorable moisture. Improved varieties or hybrids are generally leafier and shorter than
older varieties. The solid stems are often densely hairy and usually 3/8 to 3/4 inch in
diameter. Leaves are long, scabrous, rather slender, and may be smooth or have hairy
surfaces. Leaves, as well as stems, may vary in color from light yellowish green to deep
purple. A good stand of pearl millet will produce plants with relatively fine stems and
profuse leafy growth. Pearl millet has a significantly higher leaf to stem ratio than
other forages such as sudangrass, sorghum-sudan and foxtail millets.
The plant tends to tiller profusely under favorable climatic conditions and at times
when it compensates for uneven stand establishment. Prop roots arise from the lower nodes
to help support the maturing plant. Pearl millet contains one seed producing shoot but
generally does not reach the heading stage of development under current harvest conditions
or growing season in North Dakota. Regrowth potential after harvesting is comparable to
sudangrass and much greater than foxtail and proso millets.
Pearl millet seed heads or inflorescence are often similar in size and shape to the
common cattail that grows in marshes and wetlands. The head is stiff and compact, 1-1.5
inches in diameter, usually 6-18 inches long. Spikes produce from 870 to 3000 seeds per
plant, averaging 1600. Seeds of pearl millet are much larger than the hulled seeds of
other millets.
Soils
Pearl millet, like most crops, thrives best on rich soils, but it is also suited for
sandy soils. It tends to produce higher tonnage than the foxtail millets or sudangrass on
sandy soils. The crop tolerates poor, infertile soils better than most other crops.
Stand Establishment
Planting into a firm, mellow, moist seedbed is an important step in successful pearl
millet production. Pearl millet seed is small, so shallow planting 1/2 to 1 inch deep into
firm seedbed to obtain good seed-to-soil contact is critical. Field trials have shown that
when a firm seedbed is lacking, poor emergence is common and stand failures occur.
Plant into a weed-free seedbed after all danger of frost is past. A soil temperature of
65 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit is recommended for faster germination and stand establishment.
Pearl millet can be planted throughout the growing season if moisture is present for
germination. Plant no earlier than late May, with early to mid June recommended. Planting
date may depend on whether intended use is hay, silage or pasture. Normally, pearl millet
can be grazed four to six weeks after planting.
Plant 15 to 20 pounds of seed per acres if solid seeding or broadcasting pearl millet.
Seed 7 to 10 pounds per acre if planting in 30 to 42 inch rows. Heavier seeding rates
should produce finer stems.
Fertilization
Pearl millet will respond to fertilization much like annual grain crops. Adequate
fertilizer is necessary to produce optimum yields of high quality forage. The fertilizer
requirements for pearl millet are similar to other annual grasses such as oats, foxtail
millet and sudangrass for forage production. Suggested levels would be 40 to 60 pounds of
available nitrogen per acre, with the heavier applications in areas of good soil moisture.
Apply 15 to 20 pounds of P2O5 per acre on soils that test low
phosphorus, generally less than than 5 pounds per acre.
Forage Harvesting
Pearl millet provides a wide range of alternative uses when utilized as an annual
forage. It may be cut for hay, haylage, silage, green-chop or pasture.
Silage
Pearl millet can provide a high tonnage silage with good nutritive value. Research data
from the NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center showed pearl millet produced higher
yields than corn and grain sorghum, and similar tonnage compared with sorghum-sudangrass
(Table 1). Forage sorghum produced the highest tonnage in this trial.
Table 1. Dryland annual forage production for
silage comparing pearl millet with other annual
forage crops at the NDSU-Carrington Research
Extension Center.
-----------------------------------------------------
Dry Matter Basis 70%
Forage Plant ------------------------- moisture
Crop Height ADF NDF Protein TDN yield/ac
-----------------------------------------------------
inches -------- percent -------- tons
Corn:
1988 57.3 33.1 59.1 12.7 64.7 8.26
1989 63.0 26.1 54.3 9.6 69.7 12.73
Forage
sorghum:
1988 50.7 32.2 62.2 11.7 63.7 8.84
1989 82.0 37.8 62.3 9.6 58.6 18.22
Sorghum-
sudan:
1988 63.3 34.4 65.7 10.8 62.1 9.69
1989 87.0 40.4 68.5 9.6 58.6 14.66
Grain
sorghum:
1988 31.3 30.0 60.1 10.8 65.3 7.56
1989 33.5 22.1 43.7 11.3 70.9 7.97
Pearl
millet:
(Hy-Pro)
1989 61.5 38.7 48.3 15.0 51.9 14.10
-----------------------------------------------------
Harvesting pearl millet for silage should occur as soon as frost occurs or when heads
appear. Leave a minimum of 6 to 10 inch stubble if regrowth is desired for fall grazing.
Pearl millet is known as a forage capable of producing high contents of crude protein.
Data from Carrington indicated crude protein of pearl millet was 15.0 percent, the highest
among all crops tested in this trial (Table 1). Pearl millet generally does not produce
grain in North Dakota and subsequently will have a lower total digestible nutrient (TDN)
value and be lower in energy than corn and grain sorghum.
Corn, forage sorghum and grain sorghums continue to provide a good alternative for
planting an annual crop for silage production. However, the lower production costs of
pearl millet and farm program considerations may prove it to be an alternative for silage
production.
Hay
Pearl millet can provide excellent hay when properly cured. It is easier to cure than
sorghum, sorghum-sudangrass hybrids and sudangrass. Pearl millet is more difficult to cure
than the foxtail millets. A conditioner or crimper is recommended for proper curing.
Research trials were conducted at the Carrington and Minot Research Extension Centers
comparing pearl millet to other annual forage crops to evaluate hay production potential.
Pearl millet has the potential to produce excellent yields of high quality forage,
especially during growing seasons with favorable moisture (Table 2). Forage production was
similar among all forage crops during the drought years 1988 and 1989.
Table 2. Dryland annual forage production for
hay comparing pearl millet with other annual
forage crops at the NDSU-Carrington Research
Extension Center from 1986-1989.
-----------------------------------------------------
Dry Matter Basis Dry
Forage Plant ------------------------- matter
Crop Height ADF NDF Protein TDN yield/ac
-----------------------------------------------------
inches -------- percent -------- tons
Pearl
millet:
(Hy-Pro)
1986 63.6 -- -- -- -- 4.13
1987 76.0 -- -- -- -- 7.63
1988 33.7 35.8 58.5 16.4 55.3 1.29
1989 30.2 40.2 62.0 16.3 50.2 2.09
Foxtail
Millet:
(Siberian)
1986 39.6 -- -- -- -- 3.27
1987 31.7 -- -- -- -- 4.13
1988 27.6 38.3 66.2 12.6 52.3 2.15
1989 25.2 39.1 64.4 10.9 51.4 3.18
Proso
Millet:
1986 53.3 -- -- -- -- 2.63
1987 44.0 -- -- -- -- 4.36
1988 36.4 33.8 54.2 13.8 57.5 1.70
1989 30.4 43.8 65.0 10.8 46.0 2.94
Sudangrass:
1986 85.0 -- -- -- -- 3.81
1987 82.3 -- -- -- -- 5.05
1988 46.7 30.1 60.6 11.6 65.2 1.86
1989 39.1 27.8 55.5 9.4 66.8 2.17
Sorghum-
sudan:
1986 89.1 -- -- -- -- 4.51
1987 96.7 -- -- -- -- 6.95
1988 46.9 33.1 62.1 11.1 63.0 1.63
1989 47.5 29.2 58.3 10.7 65.9 2.62
-----------------------------------------------------
Once again, crude protein values were highest in pearl millet when compared to all annual
forage crops for all years tested, averaging 16.4 percent for the two years (Table 2).
Pearl millet had a TDN value higher than foxtail millets and proso millet but lower than
sudangrass and sorghum-sudangrass.
A three-year demonstration comparing forage production of annual forages for hay was
conducted at Minot in 1987-1989. Two pearl millet hybrids (Hy-Pro, Mil-Hy 100) were
studied as well as proso millet, three foxtail millets varieties, three sudangrass
hybrids, four sorghum-sudangrass hybrids, and three sorghum hybrids.
Hy-Pro pearl millet produced the highest three-year acreage yield among all forages at
Minot (Table 3). MilHy 100 also performed well, producing a higher yield among all other
annual forages with the exception of sorghum-sudangrass WS-20 and Highland 2. Only
Siberian millet outproduced Hy-Pro pearl millet during the drought of 1989.
Table 3. Dryland annual forage production for
hay comparing pearl millet hybrids (Hy-Pro and
Mil-Hy 100) with other annual forage crops
at the NDSU-Minot Research Extension Center
from 1987-1989.
---------------------------------------------------
Average Dry
plant matter* 70% moisture
Plant Species height yield/ac yield/ac (D.M.)
---------------------------------------------------
(1987-1989) (1989) (1987-1989)
Pearl Millet:
(Hy-Pro) 34.6 2.5 9.2 (2.76)
(Mil-Hy 100) 29.3 1.9 8.6 (2.58)
Foxtail Millet:
(Siberian) 27.0 2.8 8.0 (2.40)
(German) 25.7 2.3 7.6 (2.28)
(Manta) 24.0 2.3 7.2 (2.16)
Proso Millet**: 33.0 2.5 6.2** (1.86)
Sudangrass**: 54.8 1.8 7.7 (2.31)
Sorghum-
sudangrass**: 46.5 2.2 8.2 (2.46)
Sorghum**: 41.9 1.7 7.5 (2.25)
---------------------------------------------------
*No data was collected in 1987, average is for
only the two years 1988 and 1989.
**Data is the average for all varieties tested.
Data across North Dakota would indicate that pearl millet appears to be an excellent
choice of annual forage for hay production. Although curing may be difficult without the
use of a crimper or conditioner, forage production and nutritive content is excellent.
Planting of pearl millet can be recommended over sudangrass and sorghum-sudangrass hybrids
for hay production due to the prussic acid toxicity potential and extreme difficulty in
curing found in sudangrass and sorghums. Foxtail millets may also be a good choice for hay
production but possess little regrowth potential. Pearl millet has excellent regrowth
potential when properly harvested and when favorable climatic conditions exist.
Harvesting for hay should occur before heading or at about a 30 to 40 inch height. Use
of a conditioner or crimper, if possible, is desired for proper curing. Leave a 6 to 10
inch stubble for best regrowth potential.
Pasture
Pearl millet is similar to sudangrass for pasture potential. It was introduced to the
northern regions of the United States as a pasturing type of annual forage. Pearl millet
has excellent regrowth potential due to tillering responses to defoliation.
Prussic acid toxicity IS NOT present in pearl millet, which will make it more desirable
than sudangrass varieties, hybrids and crosses. A period of four to six weeks of growth or
height of 24 to 30 inches are recommended before grazing. Plants at this stage result in
best forage production potential and minimize high nitrate levels. Plants grazed before
this recommended time may have nitrate levels toxic to livestock. Drought stresses pearl
millet, causing nitrate levels to be higher than normal. Test the forage for nitrate
levels before grazing when stress situations occur.
Pearl millet makes excellent forage for beef cattle, dairy cows, and sheep. Potential
for lower percent butterfat content in dairy cattle has been reported. Grazing studies
with beef and dairy heifers indicate good animal performance. Allow cattle to graze until
4 to 6 inch stubble remains, then remove.
Allow 18 inches of regrowth before regrazing. Rotational grazing is recommended with
pearl millet. Delayed planting dates for later grazed pastures may be desired to coincide
with the proper plant height and maturity for each pasture grazed in the rotation
schedule.
Conclusion
Research data in North Dakota has shown pearl millet to be a very palatable forage
producing high yields with outstanding crude protein content. It provides a good
alternative crop for hay, haylage, silage, or pasture. Curing will be similar to
sudangrass but longer and more difficult than foxtail millets. A crimper or conditioner is
highly recommended. It makes an excellent annual pasture grass without the prussic acid
poisoning potential commonly found in sudangrass and sorghums. Pearl millet tends to be
more productive on sandy and infertile soils than other annual forages, but still performs
best on fertile, moist soils.
R-1016, May 1991
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