CROPS 



121 



irrigation. If intended for fodder, wheat, like other cereals, 

 should be cut while still unripe, as the straw is then more 

 palatable and digestible, and contains nutriment which, if the 

 plant were allowed to ripen, would be transferred to the seed. 

 Wheat does best generally with a firm seed-bed, and this 

 fact is to be borne in mind in preparing the land before 

 sowing. For the same reason soil containing a fair amount of 

 clay or humus is more suited to wheat than are open, sandy 

 soils. 



Average Composition of Wheat and Wheat Straw. 



Barley (Hordeum distichum, two-rowed ; Hordeum vulgare, 

 six-rowed), of which there are many varieties, usually has a 

 shorter period of growth than wheat. The soil must therefore 

 be provided with a sufiiciency of plant food, although heavy 

 nitrogenous manuring is not desirable, since the crop is thereby 

 rendered rank and coarse, and the grain unsuited for malting 

 purposes. Barley straw is more palatable and digestible than 

 wheat straw, and is often used as food for cattle. The grain 

 contains less gluten than wheat, and this gluten is not so 

 tenacious as that of wheat. Consequently barley meal does 

 not furnish a satisfactory bread. 



Barley is largely used for the preparation of malt. The grain 

 is soaked for some hours in water, and then laid in thick layers 

 on floors. The seed germinates and heat is evolved. When the 

 germination has proceeded far enough the sprouted barley is 



