The morphology and domestication of pearl millet

Autor: J. M. J. de Wet, Jere Brunken, Jack R. Harlan
Rok vydání: 1977
Předmět:
Zdroj: Economic Botany. 31:163-174
ISSN: 1874-9364
0013-0001
Popis: Among the many grasses which man has succeeded in domesticating, pearl millet (Pennisetum americanum (L.) Leeke) is one of the most tolerant to conditions of drought. Throughout most of its distribution, mean annual rainfall varies between only 250 and 800 mm. As such, pearl millet is well adapted to moisture conditions which few other grain crops would even survive. A native of the Old World tropics, it reaches its greatest importance in the dry sahel zone which stretches across sub-Saharan Africa and in the semiarid regions of northwestern India. Throughout its distribution, pearl millet serves a multitude of traditional societies which would otherwise be hard pressed for their sustenance. The present study was initiated in order to fill some of the wide gaps which currently exist in our knowledge of the biology of pearl millet. Summarized here are the results of investigations into: (1) the present-day biological structure of the crop in terms of the composition of its primary gene pool; (2) the characteristics and distributions of the basic races in pearl millet; and (3) the time, place and events which surrounded its domestication.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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