238 CHAPTER XIV 



* Winter ' wheats ; applying the term ' Spring ' to those which 

 are deUcate and must be sown after the winter has passed. 



" Varieties of T. dicoccum, T. orientale, T. durum, T. 

 pulonicum, T. turgidum, and T. pTjramidale are usually 

 delicate; on the other hand, T. sphcr/rococcum , T. spelta, and 

 T. monococcuin are hardy races. Some forms of T. com- 

 pactum, and T. vulgar e are also hardy, while others are tender 

 and die out in several continental winters. Of these, the rapid- 

 growing forms with the erect habit and broad leaves are 

 usually delicate, while the slower-growing late-ripening sorts 

 with narrow leaves which lie close to the ground are hardy. 



" Sinz found that winter wheats, showing great resist- 

 ance to frosts transpire less, have firmer tissues and higher 

 dry-matter content than spring forms. 



" I have frequently observed that hares and rabbits pick 

 out and eat typical winter wheats before touching the spring 

 forms when both are grown in the same field." He states 

 further, too, " very distinct differences in the habit of growth 

 are visible in autumn and early spring among young wheat 

 plants of different varieties. Two extreme types are readily 

 recognised— namely, (1) the erect type with shoots that spring 

 up almost vertically, and (2) the prostrate type whose leafy 

 shoots, lie on the surface of the soil. In those of erect habit 

 the young shoots form a somewhat compact tuft, 

 and the culms of the mature plant converge 

 at the base to a narrow point just below ground, 

 resembling the ribs of a nearly closed umbrella. They 

 are very liable to lodge and are easily pulled out of the 

 ground. The tendency to grow in this manner is sometimes 

 seen in plants with only two leaf -blades developed, the first 

 blade then making but a nan-ow angle with the second. In 

 plants of the prostrate habit the first loaf-blade becomes hori- 

 zontal soon after the second blade appears. Later, the several 

 shoots of the young plant come away from each other and 

 soon come to lie close to the surface of the soil, the strongly 

 curved parts at this stage being the short leaf sheaths. The 

 extreme forms of this type are sometimes called by farmers 

 creeping wheats. Wheats with this habit do not easily lodge 

 and are so firmly rooted in the ground that they are difficult to 

 pull up." The reason why farmers prefer the late wheats (and 

 late oats which behave in the same way) for grazing is 

 apparent. 



