It is native to Southeast Asia and introduced to Northern China and India in remote antiquity, and elsewhere cultivated in gardens as an annual.

[7][9] The species, native to Southeast Asia,[10] was named by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 with the epithet as a Latin translation of the metaphorical tear of Job.

As of February 2015[update], four varieties are accepted by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families:[11] Job's tears—along with Coix in —was formerly placed in the Maydeae, now known to be polyphyletic.

It can reach a height between 1.20 m to 1.80 m. Like all members of the genus, their inflorescences develop from a leaf sheath at the end of the stem and consist partly of hard, globular or oval, hollow, bead-like structures.

[2] These shells cover the bases of the flowers (inflorescences) which are male and female racemes/panicles; the male racemes project upright and consist of overlapping scale-like spikelets, with yellow stamens that pop out in-between, and there are one or two yarn-like female racemes drooping from the base.

[Sch 2] Job's tears is native to Southeast Asian countries, namely India, Myanmar, China, and Malaysia.

[21] Residue on pottery from a Neolithic (late Yangshao Culture) site in north-central China[a] shows that Job's tears, together with non-native barley and other plants were used to brew beer as early as ca.

[24][25] And further east in Japan, the plant has been found at the Toro site, Shizuoka Prefecture dating to the Yayoi Period.

[26] Remains of Job's tears have been found in archaeological sites in northeastern India, dating to around 1000 BC.

In China, the current cultivation of Job's tears mainly occurs in Fujian, Jiangsu, Hebei, and Liaoning provinces.

[32][33] The hard, white grains of Job's tears have historically been used as beads to make necklaces and other objects.

[18] Strands of Job's tears are used as Buddhist prayer beads in parts of India, Myanmar, Laos, Taiwan, and Korea according to Japanese researcher Yukino Ochiai who has specialized on the ethnobotanic usage of the plant.

[34] In Japan, the grains growing wild are called juzudama (数珠玉) ‘Buddhist rosary beads’), and children have made playthings out of them by stringing them into necklaces.

[39][c] This type has been published as a separate species, C. agrestis in the past,[41] but this is now recognized also as a synonym of C. lacryma jobi var.

[24] Yanagita in his Ocean Road hypothesis argues that the pearly glistening seeds were regarded as simulating or substituting for cowrie shells, which were used as ornaments and currency throughout Southern China and Southeast Asia in antiquity, and he argued both items to be part of cultural transmission into Japan from these areas.

Yanagita had reproduced a distribution map of the usage of ornamental cowries throughout Asia (compiled by J. Wilfrid Jackson),[46] and Japanese ethnologist Keiji Iwata [ja] alluded to a need for a distribution map of ornamental Job's tears, for making comparison therewith.

[55] The Wa people and other minorities like the Taungyo ethnic group use the beads in apparel in Shan State, Myanmar.

[58] Job's tears (Tagalog: tigbí) are otherwise known by many local names in the Philippines (e.g. Bikol: adlái in Visaya Islands).

[59] The plant was known as calandula in Spanish, and the hards seeds were strung together as beads or into rosaries in parts of New Spain, e.g., Puerto Rico.

[citation needed] Throughout East Asia, Job's tears are available in dried form and cooked as a grain.

[70] In Japan unpolished grains are also sold, and marketed as yūki hatomugi (‘organic job's tears’).

[70] A similar drink, called yi ren jiang (薏仁漿), also appears in Chinese cuisine, and is made by simmering whole polished Job's tears in water and sweetening the resulting thin, cloudy liquid with sugar.

[citation needed] In Japan, the roasted kernels are brewed into hatomugi cha (ハトムギ茶), literally a "tea".

[73] This is drunk for medicinal value and not for enjoyment, as it does not suit the average consumer's taste, but a more palatable brew is obtained by roasting seeds that have been germinated, which reduces the distinctive strong odor.

[73][k] In southern China, Job's tears are often used in tong sui (糖水), a sweet dessert soup.

One variety is called ching bo leung in Cantonese (Chinese: 清補涼; pinyin: qing bu liang), and is also known as sâm bổ lượng in Vietnamese cuisine.

One Korean liquor is called okroju (옥로주; hanja: 玉露酒), which is made from rice and Job's tears.

The 3rd plowing is done when the seedlings are 30 cm high, combined with fertilizer and soil cultivation to promote root growth and prevent collapse.

During the growth and maturation stage, water deficits will reduce the leaf area index and lead to barrenness,[84] which negatively affects photosynthesis and dry matter production.

When nearly 80% of adlay grains turn brown, the panicle will be harvested by cutting the stems and leaving three nodes above the ground.