788 DISCUSSION ON WHEAT: 
Bluestem—were submitted at the outset to chemical and physical examina- 
tion to determine their relative values as compared with Red Fife, and to 
ascertain, after growth in various parts of Canada, the effect of environ- 
ment, soil, climate, &c., upon their composition.! 
Among the more prominent deductions made from this work were the 
following :— 
1, That the percentage of protein of the Canadian-grown Russian 
wheats was very similar in amount to that of Red Fife. The averages 
were as follows: Ladoga, 1431 per cent.; Saxonka, 13°91 per cent. ; 
Kubanka, 13°77 per cent.; and Red Fife, 14°00 per cent. 
2. That the Manitoba-grown Red Fife was fully equal, and indeed 
somewhat superior in protein, to the best-grown varieties of Minnesota. 
The samples examined furnished the following averages: Wellman’s Fife, 
13°68 per cent. ; Bluestem, 11°75 per cent.; Red Fife, 14:00 per cent. 
3. That growth in the Canadian North-West had, in the majority of 
instances, markedly increased the gluten content. Thus, imported Ladoga 
contained 12°75 per cent. protein, while the average cf eight samples of 
grain grown in the North-West from this seed was 14°57 per cent., a 
significant illustration of the influence of environment on the composition 
of wheat. 
In 1893, when Ladoga had been successfully grown for several years in 
certain districts of the North-West, a further and more exhaustive study 
of its flour was made, supplemented by baking trials on a large scale.’ 
We found that, compared with Red Fife, Ladoga yielded a gluten of 
inferior quality; it was less elastic, more sticky, and yellower. Though 
occasionally, with special manipulation, a well-risen and fairly white bread 
was obtained, in the larger number of trials, and when the baking methods 
were not specially modified, the bread was somewhat flat, heavy, and 
yellowish. Our experiments indicated further that, weight for weight, 
Ladoga flour yielded a larger weight of bread than that of Red Fife. 
Composition of Canadian and Foreign Wheats. 
As a professional juror at the World’s Columbian Exposition, held in 
Chicago, 1893, the writer co-operated in the analysis of the cereals sub- 
mitted for award. In this series there were 166 samples of wheat, forty-nine 
of which were from Canada. The analytical data, which have been 
published in extenso,’ furnished evidence of the high nutritive qualities 
of Canadian cereals in general, demonstrating more particularly the 
superiority of Red Fife and White Fife wheats as grown in Manitoba and 
the North-West. 
Cross-breds from Red Fife and Ladoga. 
Following up this line of investigation, we undertook, in 1899, a com- 
parative study of Red Fife, Preston, Stanley, and Percy wheats as grown 
in Manitoba, the three latter varieties being cross-breds originated at the 
Central Experimental Farm from Red Fife and Ladoga.* 
The most noticeable feature was the great similarity in composition 
of the four members of the series. Judged by chemical standards accepted 
at that time, all were exceptionally good, comparing most favourably as 
regards protein content with average market samples of the best wheats 
of the world. Of the cross-breds, Preston only falls behind in protein, 
while both Perey and Stanley showed slightly higher percentages than 
1 Bulletin No. 4. Ladoga, Red Fife, and other varieties of Wheat. March 
889 
? Bulletin No. 18. Ladoga Wheat. February 1893. 
° Report of the Chemist, Central Experimental Farm, 1895. Bulletin No. 45, 
Division of Chemistry, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. 
4 Report of the Chemist, Central Experimental Farm, 1900. 
