THE MOST IMPORTANT CEREALS 169 



stems with five to seven joints occasionally an eighth. The inflorescence 

 is a spike of spikelets with a strongly compressed rachis. The horizontal 

 cushion, where the spikelets articulate, distinguishes barley from wheat 

 and rye. There are three spikelets at each joint of the rachis. The 

 lateral spikelets of each group of three are sometimes imperfect with the 

 short branch, or rachilla, prolonged beyond the central spikeletas a bristle, 

 but accommodated within the groove of the grain. Each spikelet is one- 

 flowered. The glumes are narrow and awn-like forming an involucre- 

 like enclosure of the spikelets. The lemma is broad and bears a long 

 barbed awn. The palea is about, as long, as the lemma and has two ridges 

 The styles are short and the two lodicules are prominent. Self-pollina- 

 tion is the rule in the barleys, but occasional cross pollination occurs in 

 the four-rowed and two-rowed nodding barleys. The mature kernel may 

 be covered in the hulled barleys by the palet and lemma. These scales 

 come loose in the naked barleys. 



Barley is used principally in the preparation of malt in the brewing 

 industries. Smaller quantities are ground and made into bread, while 

 pearl barley is used in soups. Barley is a valuable feed for dairy cows, 

 sheep, hogs and poultry. 



Cultivation. Barley should be sown, as soon, as danger from severe 

 frosts are over, and the soil is sufficiently warm and dry to make a good 

 seed bed. This date varies in the northern states from April i to May 15. 

 In the humid regions, seeding is at the rate of 8 pecks to the acre and in 

 drills six to eight inches apart. This method insures an even distribution 

 of the seed. Barley, in seasons of drought is benefited by cultivation 

 with a spike-toothed harrow, or weeder. In the Rocky Mountain states, 

 considerable barley is grown under irrigation. 



Barley ripens in the southern states from May i to June i and in the 

 northern states during July and August. Care must be exercised to 

 harvest barley at the right time, neither too early nor too late. A good 

 index is the hardness of the grain which should just be dented with the 

 finger nail. The crop is usually harvested with the binder, and if weather 

 permits, the bundles should dry before being placed together in the shocks, 

 which should be capped to protect the grain from heavy rains. 



For small farms threshing from the stack is better than from the shock, 

 as a better quality of grain is obtained. Care should be used in threshing 

 as many grains will be cracked, if the concaves of the machine are set too 

 close. After threshing, the grain should be carefully housed in dry bins. 



