CHAPTER XIII 

 SECALE CEREALE (Rye) 



Habit of Plant, Roots. — Rye is an annual. It is reported, 

 however, that rye stubble in a field may sprout after long 

 standing, or that close pasturing for a season may cause it 

 to live through a second winter. This is no doubt a reversion 

 to the perennial habit displayed by the species from which 

 our cultivated rye came. 



Rye throws out a whorl of four primary roots, thus differ- 

 ing from the other cereals. The root system branches pro- 

 fusely in the first foot of soil and extends to a depth of 4 or 

 5 feet. 



Stems, Leaves. — As compared with wheat, oats and barley, 

 the stems of rye are tougher, slenderer, and longer. There 

 are commonly five to six, rarely four to seven stem joints. 

 The leaves are similar to those of wheat. The ligule is short 

 and somewhat rounded. The auricles are white, narrow and 

 wither early; sometimes they are absent altogether. 



Inflorescence. — This is a spike. It is usually somewhat 

 longer than the wheat spike, and is rather uniformly four- 

 rowed. There are from 20 to 30 rachis joints. There is a 

 single spikelet at each joint. All the spikelets, from base 

 to tip, are fertile. The spikes have no terminal spikelet. 



Spikelet. — Each spikelet (Fig. 55) consists of three flowers. 

 The two lateral flowers mature grains, the middle one aborts. 

 The glumes are very narrow; the lemma is broad, keeled, 

 and bears a long, terminal awn; the keel is strongly barbed; 

 the palet is thin, blunt and two-keeled. The lodicules are 

 IS3 



