294 



SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE. 



May, 1922 



ing this period, this class of wheat is un- 

 successful due to development of scab, 

 black end and other diseases and to the 

 formation of an excess of starch in the 

 kernels. 



Kubanka and Pelissier are direct intro- 

 ductions from Russia. Acme was develop- 

 ed at the Highmore South Dakota Exper- 

 iment Farm, and was first distributed in 

 1917. 



Monad was developed at the Fargo, 

 Ncrth Dakota Experiment Station. Acme 

 is a selection from Kubanka C. I. 1516. 

 Monad is a selection from an un-named lot 

 of Russian wheat, probably of the Ar- 

 nautka variety. Both Acme and Monad 

 are therefore pedigreed amber durum var- 

 ieties and have proved to be superior in 

 yield, drouth resistance, and rust resist- 

 ance, being practically free from rust in 

 Dakota. Both Acme and Monad have 

 weak straw and are therefore not suitable 

 for the strongest soils. Recent tests by 

 the Pillsbury Milling Co. of Minneapolis 

 indicate that the color of Acme and Monad 

 flour is not as good as that of the origin- 

 al Kubanka for macaroni manufacture 

 Standard milling and baking tests of Acme 

 in comparison with other amber durum 

 varieties covering a long period of years 

 a.e reported in South Dakota Bulletin 

 194. These tests failed to show any in- 

 feriority in quality in Acme as compared 

 with Kubanka, but in view of the fact 

 that Acme and Monad lodge more readil.y 

 on rich soils than Kubanka and that color 

 tests on the 1921 crop have proved infer- 

 ior to Kubanka, it is recommended that 

 Saskatchewan farmers grow Kubanka 

 rather than the newer selections if for 

 any reason they wish to grow durum 

 wheat. Durum wheat flour is used prim- 

 arily for the manufacture of semolina 

 flour for making macaroni, spaghetti and 

 similar products, but it is also said to be 

 used for blending with bread wheat flour 

 at the rate of from 25 to 35 percent durum 

 flour to 65 or 75 percent bread wheat 

 flour. 



Kubanka is generally recognized as the 

 best milling variety of durum wheat and 

 is more generally grown in North America 

 than all other varieties combined. Data 

 comparing this variety with our standard 

 ;•.'1l•i^; of bread wheat will be found in 

 s.>v( ral of the tables. Its flour color 



is creamy yellow and its yield of flour 

 is excellent, but the loaf volume is less 

 than that of Marquis. Kubanka bread 

 is pleasant to the taste and of light food 

 value, but it is not as light nor as white 

 as bread made from Marquis wheat. Hence, 

 under present market demands, it must be 

 considere^I in a class by itself, its chief 

 uses being for manufacture of macaroni, 

 spaghetti, puffed wheat, and for blending 

 purposes. Since durum wheat is extra 

 hard and brittle, special adjustments of 

 the milling machinery are necessary. As 

 a result, mills grinding durum wheat fre- 

 quently specialize in it. 



Unfortunately, much of the durum 

 wheat has become mixed with bread wheat 

 due to growing the two types in the same 

 district. This gives a product which is 

 neither durum nor bread wheat and is 

 inferior from the miller's point of view. 

 Since durum wheat growing is new in 

 Saskatchewan it is urged that it be con- 

 fined to the districts where bread wheat 

 fails or makes a short crop due to drouth 

 and that those beginning with it ''make 

 haste slowly" and insist on having pure 

 seed to start with. By so doing, the Sask- 

 atchewan grown dui'um wheat can be 

 maintained as a superior product, which 

 will eventually find a special demand on 

 the market by large concerns that special- 

 ize in the manufacture of durum wheat 

 products. 



Group Vn.— Red Durum (D5) 



This is an unnamed variety that occurred 

 in some of the bulk shipments of amber 

 durum wheat when imported from Russia. 

 The grain is hard, bright and vitreous. It 

 appears to be of excellent quality but un- 

 fortunately its appearance is deceiving. 

 The grain can be easily distinguished from 

 the several bread wheat varieties by the 

 fact that it has no brush. 



The strain known as D5 was developed 

 at the Nortli Dakota Agricultural College 

 and distributed in a limited way for trial 

 by farmers because of its practical im- 

 munity to stem rust of wheat {pucciuia 

 graminis). Its api)earance in field and 

 treslied sample was so pleasing that it 

 was rapidl.y increased and spread -widely 

 over North Dakota and into certain local- 

 ities in South Dakota. It rapidly became 

 mixed with other wheats groAvn in the 

 same localities, through custom threshing, 



