No. 7. 



Italian Spring Wheat. 



99 



less ; — third, ear or spike wheat, grain white, 

 beardless;— fourth, Siberian Spring wheat, 

 introduced into Oneida Co. by Dr. Goodsell, 

 bearded, and generally considered inferior in 

 quality to the Italian, but a good grain for 

 yield; — fifth, Egyptian wheat; in Europe 

 treated and spoke of as a winter wheat ; here 

 sown as a spring wheat; but we have known 

 many farmers who preferred sowing their 

 spring wheat immediately before the freezing 

 'of the ground, in the fall; — sixth, Italian 

 wheat, the kind spoken of in the communi- 

 cation of Mr. Hathaway, and apparently the 

 most valuable of the varieties yet introduced 

 among us. There is in the last number of 

 the Cultivator a paper from Mr. Speyerer of 

 Pennsylvania, and the qualities and culture of 

 another variety of spring grain called in 

 Germany, where it is extensively grown^ 

 spelt wheat. Spelt grows with a firm short 

 stalk, will grow on most soils, and makes, 

 when properly prepared, good flour: but as 

 the berry much resembles barley, and cannot 

 be divested of its adhesive husks by threshing, 

 it requires the operation of a mill similar to 

 those used for hulling rice or barley, before 

 it can be manufactured into flour. 



The extracts below are from a letter of 

 Mr. Hathaway to a friend, who wishing to 

 procure a quantity of the wheat, addressed 

 Mr. H. on the subject; requesting information 

 as to the manner of its introduction, kind of 

 soil most favorable, mode of culture, &c. &c. 

 Mr. Hathaway says — "The Italian spring 

 wheat which has been disseminated through 

 my means is an excellent grain, aad a very 

 sure crop. It yields largely, and has the won- 

 derful property of doing well on poor worn 

 out land, though of course the crop will be 

 heavier on a more favorable soil ; the fact is 

 well ascertained here, that land so light and 

 worn down, that it will not produce a crop ot 

 bats will bring a fair crop of spring wheat. 



"The original imported wheat weighed 

 full 63 lbs. to the bushel ; and now that the 

 fifth crop has come in, it weighs 62 lbs. The 

 flour is fine, and the yield good; the miller 

 speaks highly of its qualities; and the flour 

 makes good light sweet bread, rather more 

 moist perhaps than that from winter wheat. 

 The Italian is a bearded wheat,_ white chafl", 

 bright yellow straw, the berry variable in co- 

 lor, generally of a reddish yellow. 



"The proper time for sowing is in April, 

 if the ground can bo well fitted; this season 

 has been peculiar, and late sown wheat, has 

 succeeded best with us, and in some instances 

 ripened soonest. It seldom is infected with 

 smut, and if limed, never. From one and 

 one-fourth, to one and a half bushels of seed 

 are sown to the acre, rich land requiring the 

 fnost. 



" This wheat appears to be a cosmopolite," 



as it grows well, and does well on almost 

 every variety of soil, from a stiff clay to a 

 sandy plain. In this county we have very 

 little good wheat land, and I have not seen 

 it growing on any that would be pronounced 

 such by a western farmer. It usually ripens 

 by the 14th of August, and yields from fif- 

 teen to thirty-five bushels per acre. The 

 straw this year from its rapid growth is less 

 firm than usual, and is taller; the con- 

 sequence is that it has lodged more than in 

 any former year. 



"I came in possession of the original 

 wheat by accident. An Italian gentleman 

 of Florence married against his father's will, 

 was disinherited, and emigrated to America, 

 bringing among a quantity of other seeds, a 

 tierce of this wheat, intending to turn farmer. 

 The wheat did not arrive seasonable for 

 spring sowing in this place, and was left in 

 a store house near the canal. The gentle- 

 man contracted for a farm in the town of 

 Florence in this county (induced by the name 

 probably) he was no farmer and made bad 

 calculations, and worse experiments, and 

 failed- in every thing; soon became reduced, 

 and was about to eat his imported wheat for 

 which I had advanced him money to pay the 

 transit and charges. I happened to see it, 

 and was struck with its excellence, told him it 

 must not be so disposed of, procured him other 

 wheat, and took it at its cost in Italy, $2 50 

 per bushel. I succeeded in getting it into 

 the hands of some of our farmers, though 

 without much confidence on their part. But 

 the result was most gratifying — the wheat 

 actually producing about double the quantity 

 usually grown on an acre, and selling at more 

 than double the price of common spring wheat. 

 From this it has all arisen." 



A small sample of the wheat which ac- 

 companied the letter, by its appearance fully 

 justifies the account given of its quality ; be- 

 ing of a plumper berry than is usual in spring 

 wheat, thinner skinned, and kernels being 

 more easily reduced to flour. The demand 

 for the wheat has been great, and prices high, 

 but it has become so extensively cultivated 

 in that vicinity that it can be obtained for 

 seed in any desirable quantity, and in all pro- 

 bability at somewhat reduced prices. The 

 remark of Mr. Hathaway that in its adapta- 

 tion to soil, the Italian wheat might be con- 

 sidered cosmopolite, or every where at 

 home, would be applicable to it in refer- 

 ence to climate, as well as soils. It has 

 been found to succeed admirably in Canada; 

 where the culture of spring wheat promises 

 entirely to supersede that of winter erain; 

 and we have before us the Staunton Virginia 

 Spectator of August 3d, which states that the 

 Hon. Mr. Breckenridge last winter procured 

 five or six bushels from Mr. Hatiiaway, and 



