REPORT ON SHIRREFF'S BEARDED WHITE WHEAT. 39 



" We carefully tested the lot of ShirrefFs bearded white wheat, and were 

 highly satisfied with the results. It yielded as white and well-coloured nom- 

 as we ever had from Scotch wheat. The varieties which come nearest to it in 

 these respects are Talavera and Woolly ear. 



(Signed'; " " Alexander and Eobert Tod." 

 " Stea.m Mills, Leith, 

 " 26th October 1864/' 



This variety of wheat is not a solitary instance of my success 

 in discovering agricultural plants of merit, having in the same 

 way selected, raised, and sent out the Hopetoun and Shirreff oat, 

 The Mungoswells alias Fraiser alias Lady Hall, Hopetoun, 

 Shirreff's bearded red and Pringle wheat, and the Hopetoun 

 tare — all of them being extensively known in different parts of 

 the world. The history of the Hopetoun tare is somewhat 

 remarkable. The variety has a robust habit of growth, with a 

 pure white blossom, and green seeds of medium size. The plant 

 seemed to have disappeared from British agriculture, and when 

 apparently altogether lost, it formed one of the Norwegian con- 

 tributions to the Great International Exhibition at London in 

 1862, and was described in the catalogue thus : — " Of late years 

 the White Flowered or Hopetoun tare (Viola saliva Jlore alba) 

 has been cultivated at several places. From experiments I have 

 made with this plant, I find it will ripen quite as early, and yield 

 almost double the amount of green food as the common tare." 



Properly speaking, selection is the only method by which im- 

 proved agricultural plants can be obtained, but there are different 

 sources from which a selection may be made. 



1st, Foreign countries. From an early period of life I have 

 grown wheats from many distant countries without success, unless 

 it were such as had been originally sent from Britain. The 

 foreign wheats generally withstood the rigours of winter, and 

 seemed to thrive up to the time of flowering, when the ears 

 became covered with red powder, and the produce was a few im- 

 perfect seeds, and occasionally complete barrenness. In the pre- 

 sent year a variety from Australia, named Stone wheat, was 

 covered with red gum (perhaps a fungus) after blossoming, and 

 ultimately a perfect seed could not be found. Amongst this crop 

 there were one or two varieties resembling Talavera, which pro- 

 duced good grain, and in all probability these varieties were 

 originally from Britain. Hitherto I have not observed wheats 

 from foreign countries change by repeated cultivation in East 

 Lothian, and the case of the wheat from Australia is an illustra- 

 tion. Stone wheat underwent no change of habit when growing 

 in East Lothian, and Talavera remained unchanged by having 

 been grown in Australia. 



2d, Artificial fecundation. My first attempts in this direc- 

 tion were made in the hope of getting early sorts by fecundating 

 Hopetoun with pollen from Fern or April wheat. The resultant 



