CLASSIFICATION OF RYE 



191 



Rye was probably not cultivated by 

 ancient peoples previous to the Christian 

 era, as wheat and barley were. It appears 

 to have come into cultivation in the north 

 half of Europe, somewhat previous to 

 the Christian era, and its culture since 

 then has remained in that region. 



Description of the Plant. The rye 

 plant is similar in general appearance to 

 wheat, but will average ten to fifteen 

 inches taller. ' The head (Fig. 72) is 

 longer and more slender, with generally 

 two flowers to a spikelet, giving a quite 

 uniform four-ranked head instead of 

 six-ranked. Rye appears to be quite 

 generally cross fertilized instead of self- 

 fertilized as wheat and barley. Rye 

 straw is much tougher and more flexible 

 than other straws, thus adapting itself to 

 many uses in the arts, such as packing or 

 weaving into matting. 



The Rye Grain. The structure and 

 composition of the rye grain is similar 

 to wheat, although the flour made from 

 rye is more starchy than from wheat. 

 The rye grain contains gluten, and is 

 therefore adapted to the making of light 

 bread, a quality also of wheat but not 

 found in any other cereal. 



Classification of Rye. The varie- 

 ties of rye are very few compared with 

 other cultivated cereals. The heads are 

 practically all of one type, though the 

 color of grain varies somewhat. Ryes are 

 often designated as black, white, or 

 yellow, according to color of grain. No rye has black grains, but 

 rather dark brown or purplish, and makes a dark flour, the bread 



FIG. 72. Rye. 



