813 



PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. 



Part III. 



parts of the world than any other ; but all that can be advanced on this subject is con- 

 jecture. Wheat, with the exception it is said of some parts of the southern coast of 

 Africa, is cultivated in every part of the temperate and torrid zones, and in some places 

 as high as 2000 feet above the level of the sea. It has been grown from time imme- 

 morial in Britain, but in few places at a greater elevation than 600 feet. Of course 

 the elevation to which any plant can be cultivated always depends on the latitude of 

 {he situation. 



5003. Species and varieties. (Jig- 723.) Botanists reckon seven species of Triticum, 

 wliich are or may be cultivated for their grains, besides many varieties and subvaricties 

 of those in common culture. The species or subspecies are, 



1. Trfticum oestivum. Summer wheat or spring wheat (o). 

 " liyWmum, Lammas wheat (6). 



comp(5situm, Egyptian wheat (c). 

 tiirgiJum, Turgid wheat (</) 



6 Triticumjiolonicum, Polish wheat (e). 



6. Sp^lta, Spelt wheat (/). 



7. monoc<5ccuraj One-grained wheat (g). 



The first, second, fourth, and fifth sorts are by many botanists considered as only 

 varieties, and it it is doubtful whether the third and sixth may not be the same ; the 

 seventh has all the marks of a distinct species, but it is very questionable whether, if 

 much cultivated, it would always continue to produce one row of grains. 



5004. The spring or suynmer wheat (n), Bli de Mars, Fr., is distinguished from that generally sown, by 

 its narrower ears, longer beards, smaller grains, and shorter and more slender straw, and also by its- 

 inability to endure our winters. It is commonly sown in April, or even so late as May. It was known to 

 Parkinson in 16fiG, but has never been much cultivated, except in Lincolnshire. Itwas tried and given 

 up in Northumberland and Mid Lothian, and also in some counties near London. M,:ny varieties of 

 summer wheat were transmitted a few years ago to the president of the Board of Agriculture from the 

 Agricultural Society of Paris, for the purpose of experiment, and were divided among several distinguished 

 agriculturists, {Comtn. to the Board of Agr., vol. vii. p. 1 !.) ; but there has not yet been time for establishing 

 their comparative merits, or their adaptation to the climate of Britain. Summer, or, as it is often called, 

 spring, wheat has however been long and extensively cultivated in some parts of England, particularly in 

 Lincolnshire; and it is probable m.ay be found a valuable crop in the southern counties ; but the trials 

 that have been made in the north, do not seem to entitle it to a preference over winter wheat sown in 

 spring, or even oats or barley, in that climate. 



5005. Of the winter or common wheat (b), Froment blanc, Fr., there are a great number of varieties. 

 Professor Martyn, in Miller's Dictionary, has described forty-nine sorts, and Professor Thaer speaks of a 

 hundred, but atfirms that those who describe them know nothing about them, and in all probability 

 include one sort under different names. All the varieties may be reduced to two, the white, and the 

 brown or red grained. As subvaricties, there are the bearded and beardless, the woolly-chaffed, and thin 

 or hairy chaftfed, both of the reds and whites. To these some add another variety, which is the spring- 

 sowing common wheat. It is stated by those who maintain that this variety exists, that through long 

 sowing the progeny, after a number of generations, acquires a habit of coming earlier into blossom than 

 seed from winter-sown grain. This we think very likely, but are not aware that the variety is distinctly 

 known by any recognisable marks in the plants. The red or brown wheats are universally considered 

 more hardy than the white, but as yielding an inferior flour : the woolly-white is supposed to yield the 

 best flour ; but wooUj'-chaffed wheats are considered more liable to the mildew than any other. 



5006. The Egyptian, or many-spiked wheat (c), Ble de miracle ou de Smyrne, Fr., the turgid grey 

 pollard or duck-bill wheat {d), and the Polish wheat (e), may, for all agricultural purposes, be considered 

 only varieties of the common winter wheat. They are cultivated in a few places in England, and seeds of 

 them may be procured from the public botanic gardens ; but they are in little estimation. 



5007. Spelt wheat (/), the Epautre of the French, is known by its stout straw, which is almost solid, 

 and by its strong pikes, with chaff partially awned, the awns long and stiff. The chaff adheres so closely 

 to the grain as not to be separated without great difficulty. This grain, as we have seen, is a good deal 

 sown in the south of Europe. In France it is sown in spring, on land too coarse for common wheat, and 

 it ripens in July and August. It is the principal wheat sown in Suabia and the north of Sv/itzerland ; 

 and is a good deal sown in Spain. The grain is light, and yields but little flour ; but it is said to contain 

 a larger portion of gluten than common wheat, and for that reason is recommended as superior to any 

 other in pastry and confectionary. It is not cultivated in Britain. 



5008. The one.grained wheat (g). Petit epautre, Fr., is known by its small thin spike, and single row of 

 grains; the leaves and straw are remarkably small, but very hard ; and the plants tiller very much. It is 

 chiefly cultivated in the mountainous parts of Switzerland, where its straw, like that of the former species, 

 is much used for thatching. The grain makes a brown light bread ; but its great excellence, according 

 to Villars, is for gruel. 



