CHAPTER IV 

 WHEAT 



169. Origin and History. As far back as history goes, 

 wheat has been cultivated throughout the civilized world. 

 Because of its antiquity, it is somewhat difficult to trace its 

 origin. It is known to have been grown extensively in 

 western Asia, in Europe, and in the northern part of Africa, 

 ever since there have been any records of human events, 

 and there are evidences which indicate that it was grown in 

 China at least 3000 B. C. Wheat is mentioned in the first 

 book of the Bible, and its use for bread-making dates back 

 many centuries. 



DESCRIPTION AND CLASSIFICATION 



170. Relationships. Wheat belongs to the grass family 

 and to the tribe Hordeae; it is very closely related to barley 

 and rye. Certain botanists have tried to show that wheat 

 was evolved from a higher type of plant, the lily; others 

 seem to think that it is more likely that it evolved, through 

 a natural process, from the wild grass known as Aegilops, 

 common in southern Europe. There is apparently no def- 

 inite means of proving or disproving either of these theories, 

 and whether it was developed in several countries independ- 

 ently or in one section and carried by the earlier tribes to 

 other sections, is unknown. All of these theories are some- 

 what interesting, but quite unimportant. The important 

 fact is that we have this valuable plant, adapted to a very 

 wide range of soils and climatic conditions, giving us a 

 product from which the standard bread of the world is 

 made. 



