fff£ FARM. 



m-u 



HEAT SHOCKS. — 'FIG. 2. 



The cultivator's safety lies, therefore, between the extremes of early and 

 late cutting. In a word, harvest the crop when the grain has passed from 

 the milky stage to a doughy one. If the wheat be cut when the grain reaches 

 the dough state, the bran will be thin and elastic, and can be separated more 



r«adily from the flour than 

 when dead ripe. In addition 

 to the flour being finer, it will 

 also be increased in quantity 

 in consequence of the bran 

 being lighter than when ripe. 

 A 8a\ing of wheat is likewise 

 gained, which otherwise 

 would be lost by shelling in 

 the field. 



The novice can ascertain 

 the exact time when wheat 

 and other small grain ought 

 to be cut by opening heads 

 in difi'erent portions of the 

 field, and examining the ker- 

 nels carefully. The straw 

 near the ground will also 

 proclaim the time for harvest 

 by its yellow hue. 



Wheat cut in the dough 

 state ought not to be dried 

 suddenly. It may be bound 

 and stacked at once, or, if there is only a small quantity, drawn to the bam. 

 Some farmers put it into small stacks. If stacked so that the wind and siiu 

 will not dry up all the juices in the plant, enough of these will be slowly con- 

 centrated in the seed to accomplish the maturity of the grain in perfection. 

 If by rapid ripening in the sun the 

 kernels are shrivelled, more bran is 

 formed in proportion to the flour. 



A large class of fanners practice 

 threshing from the shock and hauling 

 grain direct to market. The advan- 

 tages of this plan vary ■\\dth the season. 

 When the wheat has been bleached 

 out by hot suns and repeated rains, it 

 should bo stacked and go through the 

 "sweat." During this process the 

 straw and grain become damp and 

 heat is evolved. At such times the 

 grain cannot readily be threshed, 

 therefore it is not advisable to attempt 

 it xmtil both straw and grain are dry. 

 Then it Avill be found that the beiTy 

 has been restored to color and exhibits a plump appearance, having absorbed 

 nutritive matter from the stalk. The grain has not only undergone a change 

 for the better, but the straw is also improved in quality. 



It is suggested that farmers take time to look about for extra fine heads 

 of wheat for future seed. It will also be wise to carefully note the resulta of 



WHEAT SHOCKS. — FIG. 3. 



