Book VI. 



RYE. 



821 



in the ear ; or should the earing take place before the flies appear, then only the late or spring-sown 

 wheats will suffer : but these appear slender chances. We know the history and habits of the insect 

 too well to believe that either mist, or rain, or dew, or drought, will either forward or retard their opera- 

 tions, if the main body appear about the time the wheat comes in the ear. In addition to that vile gnat, 

 our neighbours in the Lothians are threatened with a no less formidable invader in the A'scius pumila- 

 rius, which, as we are nit'ormed on respectable authority, have already commenced their depredations, 

 and are thinning the wheat plants rather liberally in that quarter. It, like the Hessian fly in 

 America, attacks ths under joints, which become habitations for the young larvse. As far as our 

 observation extends, this pest has not yet reached us in noticeable numbers." {Country Times, May 17. 

 1830.) 



5067. The culture of summer wheat differs from that of winter or spring-sown winter 

 wheat, in its requiring a more minutely pulverised and rather richer soil. It need not 

 be sown sooner than April, and it advances so rapidly to maturity that it hardly affords 

 time for hoeing (if sown in rows), or harrowing and rolling. When grass or clover seeds 

 are sown on the same ground, they are sown immediately after the wheat, and harrowed 

 in with a light harrow or rolled in. In this respect, and indeed in all others, the prepa- 

 ration of the soil and sowing of this grain are the same as for barley. 



5068. The produce of summer wheat, both in grain and straw, is considerably less than 

 that of winter wheat : the straw is only fit for litter or inferior fodder ; the flour produced 

 by the grain is rather coarser and darker than that of common wheat. Of course this 

 sort of wheat cannot, as already observed, be recommended for general culture. 



Sect. II. Rye. Secafe ceredle L. ; T'ridndria Digynia L., and GraminetB J. Seigle, 

 Fr. ; Rogon, Ger. ; Segale, Ital. ; and Centeno, Span. (Jig. 725.) 



5069. Rye, according to some, is a native of Crete ; but it is very doubtful whether 

 any country can be now ascertained to be its native soil. It has 

 been cultivated from time immemorial, and is considered as coming 

 nearer in its properties to wheat than any other grain. It is more 

 common than wheat on most parts of the continent, being a more 

 certain crop, and one which requires less culture and manure. It is 

 the bread corn of Germany and Russia. In Britain it is now very 

 little grown, being no longer a bread corn, and therefore of less 

 value to the former than barley, oats, or peas. Many consider it the 

 most impoverishing of all corn crops. 



5070. The varieties of rye are not above two, known as winter and 

 spring rye : but there is so little difference between them that spring 

 rye sown along with winter rye can hardly be distinguished from it. 



5071. The soil for rye may be inferior to that chosen for wheat: 

 it will grow in dry sandy soils, and produce a tolerable crop ; and, on 

 the whole, it may be considered as preferring sands to clays. The 

 preparation of the soil should be the same as for wheat. According 

 to Professor Thaer, rye abstracts 30 parts in 100 of the nutriment 

 contained in the soil on which it is grown. 



5072. The climate for rye may be colder than for wheat ; but it is rather more injured 

 by i-ains during winter, and equally injured by moist weather during the flowering 

 season. 



5073. Rye is sown either in autumn or spring, and either broad-cast or in drills ; two 

 bushels and a half is the usual allowance when it is sown broad-cast. As it vegetates 

 more slowly than wheat, it should be sown when the soil is dry ; a wet soil being apt to 

 rot the grain before it has completely germinated. No pickling or other preparation is 

 given. 



5074. The after cultttre, harvesting, and threshing are the same as for wheat ; and the 

 produce in grain is, under similar circumstances, equal in bulk ; but in straw it is greater 

 in rye than in any other grain. Sir H. Davy found, in 1000 parts of rye, 61 parts of 

 starch and five parts of gluten. Professor Thaer says rye is the most nourishing grain 

 next to wheat. It contains an aromatic substance, which appears to adhere more par- 

 ticularly to the husk, since the agreeable taste and smell peculiar to rye bread are not 

 found in that which is made from rye flour that has passed through a very fine bolting- 

 cloth ; while the fragrance may be restored by a decoction of rye bran in the warm water 

 used to make the dough. This substance, Thaer says, seems to facilitate digestion, and 

 has an action particularly refreshing and fortifying on the animal frame. 



5075. The use of rye is chiefly for bread, especially for gingerbread. It is also used 

 in the distilleries ; and the straw is used for the same purposes as that of wheat, except 

 that it is useless as fodder. Some prefer it for thatching and litter, and also for collar- 

 making : it is also employed in Dunstable work. Tanners are said to use it in some 

 districts. 



5076. Rye is sometimes sown as a green crop, with a view of affording some keep for 

 sheep early in the spring, and also for being ploughed in as manure j but that husbandry 



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