Black seed wild sorghum
Sorghum versicolor

Family: Poaceae

What it is like

An annual millet grass. It grows 2.5 m high. It has a ring of long spreading silky white hairs. The leaf blade is 10-30 cm long by 15 mm wide. It is hairy on both surfaces. The flower panicle is 25 cm long. The spikelets are 6 mm long.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows in wooded grassland and on waterlogged soils. It grows between 30-1,450 m altitude.

Countries/locations it is found in

Africa, Botswana, East Africa, Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How it is used for food

The seeds are eaten and also used for beer. The stalks are used as a famine food.

Edible parts

Seeds, cereal, stalks

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Mulu, Nhangaia, Zonya

Synonyms

Andropogon serratus var. versicolor (Andersson) Hack.; Sorghum purpureo-sericeum var. trinervatum Chiov.;