CHAPTER VI 



OATS 



THE cultivation of oats is of more recent date than that 

 of wheat and barley. They were not grown by the ancient 

 Greeks and Egyptians, but probably were cultivated at 

 an early date by the less civilized people that inhabited 

 east central Europe, which is thought to be the original 

 home of this crop. Oats were less important than wheat 

 and barley in the early development of southern Europe, 

 but came into importance with the civilization and 

 development of the central and northern portions of this 

 country, and have until the present time been one of the 

 important cereals in these sections. Cultivated oats 

 have probably been derived from a wild species, Avena 

 fatua, which is found growing wild in many parts of the 

 country. The oat plant is closely related to the tall oat 

 grass which is cultivated to some extent in Europe and in 

 the United States for forage. It is also closely related to 

 the wild oat, Avena sterilis, which in many parts of the 

 country is found growing wild. 



132. Botanical characters. The oat, Avena saliva, 

 like the other cereals, is an annual grass with jointed stems 

 and a fibrous root system. The roots in their manner of 

 growth are similar to those of wheat, although as a rule 

 they do not penetrate the ground so deeply. The stems 

 are somewhat coarser and larger in diameter than those of 

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