[ noun ] tall grasses grown for the elongated stiff-branched panicle used for brooms and brushes <noun.plant>
broomcorn \broom"corn\, broom corn \broom" corn`\ (Bot.) A tall variety of grass ({Sorghum vulgare} technicum), having a joined stem, like maize, rising to the height of eight or ten feet, and bearing its seeds on a panicle with long stiff branches, of which brooms are made.
Broom, Brush & Mop, the industry trade journal that makes its headquarters in Arcola, says broom consumption seems to be holding steady, although plastic bristles swept away a piece of the broomcorn market about 25 years ago.