I do agree with David about this book. I know Dinesh (Editor) who invited me to co-edit the book with him, but I could not do due to lack of time. I know Dinesh has developed a few small millet (finger, barnyard) in high altitude sub-Himalayan region of India.

It is good reference book and covers all the aspects of millets starting form production, genetics/breeding, insects/disease, and processing/products development. There have been a few such publications (books, review articles on millets in recent times. I am sure more such pubs will keep on coming based on existing research and most of them are old. Unfortunately, I do not see any significant new research publication on the critically important aspects, which are critically important significant genetic improvement of millet (e.g. yield and associated traits, grain quality attributes for better palatability and reducing anti-nutritional factors, etc.).

Don,

I downloaded a copy of the book via my employer's (Iowa State University) library for free, and read parts of it.  The book is mostly how-to and not aspirational thanks probably to the editor D.C. Joshi.  It is from an India perspective. I like the summary of flowering time within the day  information for making plant breeding crosses, and isolation distance information for seed production.  There are 15 chapters by many authors including information on value added products, agronomy, histories of cultivars and their improved traits. It is a good reference for millet practitioners.

David Brenner

NC7

Thank you, David, for sharing information on this new publication. Have you had the chance to look at it, and if so how does it compare with other recent publications on the same topic?

One question I have is regarding terminology. The "major" / "minor" distinction among millets is an old one, but I was given to understand that the field was moving to the term "small millets" for the latter. But apparently that is not a standard term? 

Another question I'll post separately about finger millet.

It is good to share information on publications. I did a search on books about millets in 2024 and 2025, and there are a number of possible interest that I'll pass on - but anyone else is welcome to beat me to it!

Don

DO, EL, MI, US

NAMA

On Wed, May 21, 2025 at 10:32 AM Brenner, David (CTR) - REE-ARS <david.brenner@usda.gov> wrote:

 

https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-981-96-4265-6

Minor Millets: Cultivation, Breeding, Genomics and Uses | SpringerLink Dr. D. C. Joshi is the Principle Investigator for Minor millets improvement program at ICAR-Vivekananda ParvatiyaKrishiAnusandhan Sansthan, Almora, India. He was involved in developing eight cultivars of minor millets and has registered seven trait-specific genetic stocks of minor millets. He has decoded the genetics of economic traits like blast resistance in finger millet and root ... link.springer.com

This book on minor millets provides a detailed account of their crop biology, agronomy, genetics, breeding, genomic resources, production constraints and value addition. The potential of minor millets in addressing food and nutritional insecurities is well-recognized. Government of India declared millets as “Shree Anna” as they are a powerhouse of nutrients and possess strong climate-resilience properties. Minor millet species, such as finger millet, foxtail millet, barnyard millet, little millet, proso millet, kodo millet, fonio millet, and teff, are the oldest-cultivated crops that are used for both food and fodder in semi-arid regions of Asia and Africa. In the recent times, they have become important due to their unparalleled nutritional profile, recognized nutraceutical properties, versatile environmental adaptability, and ability to flourish in low input agriculture and organic cultivation. However, their cultivation and consumption are declining due to lack of awareness and unavailability of literature to a broad range of audience.

This book serves as reference material for researchers and students engaged in genetic improvement, biochemistry, processing, and value addition of minor millets. 

 

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