1 86 ECONOMIC PLANTS 



braska and Kansas in the production of fine flour, al- 

 though the soft winter wheat of the middle states west- 

 ward from New York, Ohio, and southward makes 

 excellent pastry flour. 



Durum, the hardest variety of wheat, is used in 

 making macaroni. This wheat has been almost en- 

 tirely imported until the past few years, but the fact 

 that it requires less rainfall than other varieties has led 

 to its introduction in the western plains, especially in 

 Kansas," Nebraska, and the Dakotas, with favorable 

 results. 



Some of the principal advantages in growing winter 

 wheat are a better distribution of farm work; generally 

 higher yields, largely due to the maturing of the crop 

 before the extreme heat of midsummer, which often 

 prevents full development; a conservation of soil 

 fertility by the crop during the autumn and spring; 

 and, in some localities and under certain conditions, 

 an increase in pasturage. 



Note. Winter sown wheat may be pastured during the late fall 

 and winter without material injury to the growth of the plant in the 

 spring. In fact, it has been thought that judicious pasturing of wheat 

 helps to thicken the stand by increasing the number of stems to the 

 plant. 



Emmer, sometimes miscalled Speltz, is grown to 

 some extent in this country as a stock food. The hull 

 of this wheat adheres to the kernel as it does in barley. 



Wheat Sowing. - As wheat thrives best in some- 

 what solid soil, clays or clay loams, if well drained, will 

 yield the most satisfactory results, but the different 

 varieties of wheat demand varying conditions, spring 

 wheat growing well on lighter soil than winter wheat. 



