246 EXPERIMENTS ON WHEAT, Part II. 



heal thi eft plants were thofe of common wheat, and that there were 

 very, few of Smyrna wheat. I had obferved at the time of fowing, 

 that there was fome mixture in the feed : and as I had fome of 

 the fame fort ftill remaining, I was able to fatisfy myfelf that there 

 was a third part of common wheat in the Smyrna corn which I 

 had fowed ; and that it was the former which grew fo tine, and 

 of which alniofl: the whole crop confifted. 



" This fliews that Smyrna wheat does not refift hard frofts : but 

 at the fame time, fuch winters as that of 1754, very feldom happen 

 in this country. This field was reaped on the nineteenth of July : 

 the common wheat was thorough ripe, and the Smyrna wheat quite 

 green, though its grain was grown very hard. 



" I feparated the ears of Smyrna wheat from the others, m order 

 to bind them up in diftind; flieaves, that I might have their grain 

 pure and unmixed. This field produced 2 1 3 pounds of Smyrna 

 wheat, and 1737 pounds of common wheat; in all 1950 pounds: 

 which is a greater crop than that of the preceding years. 



OB SERVATIO N S on Smyrna upbeat, 



'* ]Vr Y former crops of this wheat, though the quantity was but 

 ■^^^ fmall, had already fliewed me plainly that it produces more 

 grain than any other kind. In 1755, the fheaves of this wheat, 

 of the fame fize as thofe of our common wheat, yielded more grain 

 by half than the others did. It is therefore probable, that the 

 planting of this grain will be attended with advantage, efpecially in 

 climates not fubjedl to hard frofts. 



" But what is of very great importance, is, to know well at what 

 degree of maturity this corn ftiould be reaped. The two firft years 

 that I fowed any of it, the ears were prodigiouily big, and full of 

 very plump well-fed grain : but I was uneafy not to fee them ripen. 

 They continued green, whilft I expedled daily that they would turn 

 yellow, and the grain grow hard; but in vain. By this delay, the 

 grain wafted fo much, that I never faw any Imaller, nor fo much 

 Ihrunk as thefe. However they fprouted well when fowed, and 

 produced very fine plants. 



" The third year, I determined to reap them fooner than I had 

 done the firft. Accordingly, I cut them down as foon as I found 

 that the grain had acquired a fufiicient degree of hardnefs, notwith- 

 ftanding that the corn was ftill quite green. The confequence of 

 this was, that the grain remained exceeding plump and fine. 



Year 



