Abstract: Sunshine and inorganic nutrition are important ecological factors affecting Setting rate on foxtail millet(Setaria italica Beauv.). Seed setting is affected by light shading from heading stage to 20 days after. Treated with one, two or three layers of gauze, the abortive grain rate increases 6.18%, 25.67% and 37.56% respectively, and the number of grains formed reduces by 33.44%, 43.56% and 63,08% respectively. The correlation coefficients of shading degree with the abortive grain rate and the unmber of grains formed are 0.98^*and - 0.98^*. There is a significant possitive relaton-ship between nitrogen nutrition level and the number of spikelets, while a significant negative relationship existes between nitrogen nutrition level and the abortive grain rate, r=0.9699^*and r= -0.9798^*. The effect of nitrogen nutrition level playes the most important role on seed setting from 18 days before heading to 20 days after. Raising nitrogen level during this stage, the abortive grain rate reduces 7.22% and 9.87% in two years. The effect of nitrogen nutrition is aiso influenced by rainfall. P, K, B elements affects obviously the seed setting of foxtail millet. The effects of light and inorganic nutrition on seed setting are analyzed physiologically as well.

Key words: Foxtail millet, Seed setting rate, Abortive grain