WHEAT-GROWING AND ITS PRESENT- 

 DAY PROBLEMS 



By EDWARD J. RUSSELL, D.Sc. 

 Rothamsted Experitnent Station 



Few things in the whole realm of Nature have given rise to a 

 greater number and variety of problems than wheat. The 

 reason is probably to be found in its close association with 

 man — an association that began before the dawn of history and 

 has strengthened as time has gone on. More than anything 

 else wheat is the food of civilised man, and there is no sign of 

 it being displaced from its high position. Thus the wheat 

 supply has to increase as the world's population increases ; 

 indeed it has to do more, for as nations that have hitherto 

 lived on other cereals learn its use, they tend to forsake the 

 oats, maize, rice or millet that their forefathers ate and take 

 to wheat instead. Both in old countries and in new, investi- 

 gators and practical men are at work trying to increase the 

 yield or the quality of the wheat crop. Their results are 

 published in a number of scattered journals, not always readily 

 accessible ; much of the work was summarised in the papers 

 read at a joint meeting of the Botanical, Chemical and Agricul- 

 tural Sections of the British Association arranged at the 

 suggestion of Prof. Armstrong at Winnipeg last year. 



Until recently, practically nothing was known of the origin 

 of wheat ; even the traditions of the Greeks, the Egyptians, and 

 the Chinese got no farther than asserting it to be a gift of the 

 gods. But during the last few years Schweinfurth, Koernicke, 

 Aaronsohn, Otto Stapf, and others have done much to clear 

 up this problem, and the broad outlines of the history are 

 already discovered, although much detail remains to be filled 

 in. Their work was ably summarised by Dr. Otto Stapf in his 

 paper read at Winnipeg. 



From this point of view Dr. Stapf divides the various wheats 

 into four groups, each of which appears to have had a different 

 origin. The first division consists of " Einkorn " {Triticum 

 nionococcujji), the only wheat which possesses but one perfect 

 flower, and therefore only one grain to each spikelet. It is 

 grass-like in habit, and its compact bearded ear looks much 



286 



