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CANADIAN GRAIN PEARL MILLET HYBRID

Planting: Plant in a well prepared weed free seed bed in May when soil temperatures are above 12° C (54 F) with no risk of frost . Plant with grain drill with a grass seeder, or a conventional grain drill. Packing the proper seed bed with a land packer is advisable prior to planting. The seed should be planted shallow, about half inch deep at the rate of 5 KG per acre (2Kg/ac). The seed should be only be pressed with a press wheel on the grain drill or some similar light implement. Do not pack the ground with a land packer after planting. Plant in a row of 15 inches to 24 inches. Seed may be placed about 6 inches apart within the row.

Fertilizer: Millet responds well to good soil fertility, but does not have a high nutrient demand. Fertilize according to your soil fertility level (roughly 70% of corn fertilizer).

Weed control: If weeds are heavy use roundup prior to planting.  Since pearl millet is planted relatively late, two pre-plant tillage operations are recommended, first to stimulate germination weed seeds, then , several days later, to kill weed seedlings prior to planting. Pearl millet is somewhat slow growing at the beginning of the season to provide soil cover for reducing the weed growth. Mechnical cultivation will reduce the need of herbicide applications.  

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Harvesting and Storage: If CGPMH-1 hybrid is planted before end of May, it would be ready even before for harvesting by late September or early October. The grain are ready for harvest even before the plants dry down. When the crop is ripe and dry, and ready for harvesting, grains will pop out easily if the head is pinched. At this stage, the seeds will not shatter. However, it is better to harvest soon to avoid any possible grain mold development and grain loss to birds or storm-caused stem lodging. The plants will continue to stand after a frost so a delayed harvesting is possible, but weather conditions can greatly affect drying down of grain.

An all crop or small grain combine header can be used for harvesting. Combines must be adjusted to properly thresh the small seeds. Higher cylinder speed with low air speed and correct screen for the smaller seed size could facilitate proper combining. Efficient combining can improve the grain quality and moisture level thereby minimizing chaff and other stem materials.

The grain may be stored at a maximum moisture of 12%-14%. Since the grain is smaller than sorghum and corn, it is difficult to force air through it in a grain drier. The grains flow easily and trucks and grain bins should be completely grain-tight at transport.

GRAIN PEARL MILLET FOR ORGANIC FARMING
Pearl millet requires less pesticide and fertilizer use, and could be grown effectively with organic farming for the organic human food or livestock feed market for a premium price. Using cover crops or farm manure to improve soil fertility along with cultural and mechanical weed control, and crop rotation could allow successful organic farming of pearl millet crop.

Hybrid CGPMH-1 was found to supress the root-lesion nematodes in the soil when used in crop rotations. Recently scientists, at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Delhi Research Station ,Ontario and St-Jean-sur-Richelieu Research Centre, Quebec found that growing grain pearl millet is a rotational crop with tobacco or potato was effective as growing rye, or oats and fumigating during the tobbacco or potato crop.

* Mean of 3 years Delhi, South Western Ontario.

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH FEEDING TRIALS

Feeding trials with CGPMH-1 were conducted by researchers at the university of Guelph. They found that broiler chickens fed with a pearl millet-soybean diets to 49 days of age showed superior growth and higher feed conversion efficiency as compared to those birds fed a conventional corn-soybean based diets.

Nutrient Profile of grain pearl millet:
The nurient profile of Ontario-developed CGPMH-1 is higher than corn. Pearl millet grains had 13% crude protein where as, the crude protein content in typical corn is 8-9% Lysine (one of the most essential amino-acids in cereal grains) content in pearl millet grains is nearly 30% higher than in regular corn. Tryptophan(essential amino-acids) content is three times more in pearl millet as compared to corn.