HAR^•ESTING WHEAT 



109 



Still larger machines, cutting a swath t«-ent}^-five or more feet 

 in ^^^dth and operated by steam power, and doing a corre- 

 spondingly larger amount of work. 



167. Threshing. — In some sections of the country the wheat 

 is mostly threshed directly from the shock, while in other sections 

 it is first stacked or stored in the barn and after the grain has 

 had time to go through the sweat, it is threshed. There is little 

 more danger of the threshed grain heating in the bin if threshed 

 directly from the shock, but where care is taken to have the grain 

 thoroughly dr}-, heating will not occur. Under such circum- 

 stances, there is no material difference in the qualit}* of the grain 

 or of the resulting flour. Probably much of the larger part of the 

 wheat han-ested in the United States is threshed directly from 

 the shock. Rainy weather may cause damage, which can be 

 guarded against in some measure by storing in bam or by stack- 

 ing, but ordinarily it is largely a matter of economy and con- 

 venience. The sprouting of wheat not only greatly decreases the 

 quality of the grain, but it has been sho^n that sprouting wheat 

 for six days or until grains are beginning to burst their first leaf, 

 may cause a loss of twelve per cent in weight.^ A few farmers 

 own their own threshing machines, and very rarely a machine is 

 permanently located in the barn in accordance with the English 

 custom. Ordinarily, however, the threshing is done by the itiner- 

 ant steam threshing outfit which does the work for a stated price 

 per bushel. Usually 500 to i.ooo bushels are threshed per day. 



168. Storing. — The principal things to be considered in the 

 storing of wheat are the ease of handling, freedom from 

 dampness, insects and vermin. Wheat is not injured by cold, 

 and insects injurious to wheat do not thrive at cold temperatures, 

 consequently the more exposed the granar)* the better. The 

 larger the bulk of grain and less the exposure of the surface, the 

 less will be the injur}- from insects. The surface of the rooms and 



1 Ark. BuL 42 (1896), p. 72. 



