BUCKWHEAT 



975 



BUD 



BUCK 'WHEAT, a plant producing .a three- 

 sided seed or grain, at present considered of 

 secondary importance but well worthy of culti- 

 vation. The origin of buckwheat is not known, 

 but it is supposed to be a native of Asia, and 

 was therefore named Saracen wheat by the 

 French. It takes its present name from a 

 German word meaning beech wheat, because 

 of the resemblance of the seeds to the beech- 

 nut. 



The plant has smooth, branching stems, 

 green leaves with dark veins and white flowers. 



BUCKWHEAT 

 Top of stalk, flower and fruit. 



Rather light, well-drained soils are best suited 

 to buckwheat, but the crop is hardy and is 

 less affected by soil than by frost. Because 

 it grows well on poor soil, with little cultiva- 

 tion, it has been called the poor farmer's crop, 

 and so the term buckwheaters has been applied 

 in some localities to the unskilled farmers. 

 For the best results, plant buckwheat as late 

 as possible to secure a sufficient crop before 

 the severe frosts. It begins to bloom early 

 and continues to blossom until harvest, so at 

 that time all of the grain is not fully matured; 

 but the farmer soon learns to judge the best 

 time for harvest. Buckwheat is a useful plant 

 in another sense, for by its shade it stifles many 



weeds which appear and leaves a clean field 

 for the following year. Its blossoms are a 

 favorite forage for bees. 



While cultivated in China and other Eastern 

 countries as a food plant, in Europe buckwheat 

 is used principally as feed for stock and poultry, 



Water, 1 2.6 

 r at, 22 



Carbohydrates, 73 2 



FOOD QUALITIES OF BUCKWHEAT 



being excellent for pheasants. It is sometimes 

 given to horses with bran, chaff or grain. 

 In the United States and Canada it is exten- 

 sively used to make flour from which breakfast 

 cakes are prepared. Beer may be brewed from 

 it, and it has been used in preparing cordials. 

 The blossoms have been used for brown dye. 



Buckwheat is quite extensively grown in the 

 United States east of the Mississippi River 

 and from Pennsylvania northward, averaging 

 about 15,000,000 bushels a year, bringing nearly 

 nine and a half million dollars. New York 

 contributes one-third of the amount, Penn- 

 sylvania nearly as much, Michigan about one- 

 fifteenth. In Canada the average yield is 

 over 9,000,000 bushels, valued at over five 

 million dollars ; Ontario's crop is about one-half 



PRODUCTION AREA 



Where dots are most numerous the production 

 of buckwheat is greatest. 



of Canada's total, Quebec's about a quarter, 

 and New Brunswick's one-sixth. The legal 

 weight of buckwheat is from forty-eight to 

 fifty-two pounds per bushel in the various 

 states and provinces. M.S. 



BUD, as the term is most commonly used, 

 means an unopened flower, but it applies just 

 as truly to an undeveloped leaf. 



Leaf Buds are a provision of nature for 

 allowing leaves to exist safely through a winter, 



