Italian Setaria

Family Poaceae. Very ancient edible and forage plants that have many varieties, as reflected in the large number of Latin synonyms. Because of their attractive dense panicles, two subspecies of Setaria are grown as ornamentals: mohar (moharicum) and chumiza (maxima), which in some catalogs is also called bristly Setaria (S. nwcrostetchya).

Annual herbaceous plants 40–100 cm tall, with broad-linear leaves up to 1.5 cm wide. Stems erect. Inflorescence cylindrical, dense, up to 25 cm long, fluffy, with bristles of green, yellowish or dark purple color. In chumiza the panicle is long and gracefully drooping, while in mohar it is shorter and grows almost upright; moreover, panicles can be dark brown. Blooms from July to August.

Location: Setaria is very light-loving, cold-hardy, relatively drought-tolerant and undemanding as to soil.

Care: Watering is needed for seed germination if it is very dry and hot. 2–3 fertilizer applications after thinning enhance growth and flowering.

Propagation: by seed; there are 500 seeds per 1 g. To obtain 100 plants you need 0.5 g of seed. Sow outdoors in May in clusters of 3–4 seeds spaced 25–30 cm apart. To achieve earlier flowering, sow seeds in pots for seedlings in April. Seedlings appear in 8–10 days. They must be thinned, otherwise flowering will be weak.

Uses: The large panicles of Setaria are excellent material for fresh and dried bouquets. They are also attractive in rock gardens and in mixed borders.

based on materials from the website www.delasoft.ru