September 26, 2002

Purple Majesty, a showy ornamental pearl millet hybrid developed by University of Nebraska plant breeders, has earned an All-American Selections Gold Medal award and will be featured as an AAS All-American Selection for 2003. The 4- to 5-foot annual plant features showy purple leaves with a red stripe down the center of the leaves.

UNL pearl millet earns gold medal

By Vicki Miller, IANR News and Publishing

Thanks to a serendipitous discovery in a University of Nebraska-Lincoln breeding program, a showy version of a plant usually used for forage or grain is likely to appear in home gardens nationwide as a 2003 All-America Selections Gold Medal award winner.

The newcomer is Purple Majesty, an attractive hybrid of pearl millet, or Pennisetum glaucum, which is commonly called cattail or bullrush millet, said David Andrews, NU Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources emeritus professor of plant breeding. Andrews developed this hybrid with John Rajewski, research manager in the agronomy and horticulture department.

Purple Majesty features showy purple leaves with a red midrib, or stripe, down the center of the leaves. Its long, narrow seedhead has attractive bristles good for floral arrangements. At maturity, this annual plant is 4 to 5 feet tall and 2 to 3 feet in diameter.

The Gold Medal award is reserved for plant breeding breakthroughs, according to AAS. It's awarded rarely, typically only once or twice a decade. AAS is a non-profit organization that has conducted independent plant trials since 1932.

Ball Horticultural Products Co., a plant wholesaler, began making NU's Purple Majesty available to garden centers this summer under a university licensing agreement. NU will receive royalties on sales.