WHEAT 



WHEAT 



663 



the largest "wheat-producer of any continent, rais- 

 ing nearly twice as much as North and South 

 America together. [For tables of "Yields of Wheat 

 by Continents," see page 486.] 



During the last fifty years there has been a con- 

 stant movement of the center of wheat production 

 from east to west in the United States. This has 

 proceeded much more rapidly than has the center 

 of population. In 1850, New York was one of the 

 great wheat-producing states, and the Genesee val- 

 ley was the greatest wheat-growing region in the 

 country. Since that time the wheat production of 

 New Yolrk has decreased, according to the Twelfth 

 census report, over 3,000,000 bushels, and its pro- 

 portion of the total crop has declined from 13.1 

 per cent to 1.6 per cent, while the four states 

 which now produce the most wheat were, with the 

 exception of Ohio, still unsettled. The latter state 

 was also at one time the leader in wheat produc- 

 tion, and the rich Miami valley succeeded the Gen- 

 esee valley as a wheat region. But while Ohio is 

 still a large producer of wheat, its relative produc- 

 tion has declined from 14.4 per cent to 7.6 per cent. 



Southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois was 

 once the great wheat-growing region of the coun- 

 try, but this was again superseded by Minnesota 

 and North Dakota. For the last few years Kansas 

 has been producing more wheat than any other 

 state. It seems probable that the great plains area 

 of western Kansas and Nebraska, and of eastern 

 Colorado and Wyoming and perhaps northern Texas, 

 is to be the next great wheat-growing region. 



This gradual shifting of wheat-production in 

 some of the wheat-growing states is brought out 

 in the following table (from the Statistical 

 Abstract, 1906): 



In Canada, the production of wheat has shown 

 a rapid increase. In 1871 (Canada Yearbook, 1905), 

 the total reported production was 16,723,873 

 bushels; in 1881, it was 32,350,269 bushels; in 

 1891, 42,223,372 bushels; and in 1901 it had 

 reached 55,572,368 bushels. The acreage in 1891 

 was 2,701,246 and in 1901 was 4,224,542. 

 Ontario and Manitoba had much the largest out- 

 put. The production by provinces for 1901 was: 

 Ontario, 28,418,907 bushels; Manitoba, 18,353,013 

 bushels; the Territories, 5,103,972 bushels; Que- 

 bec, 1,968,203 bushels; Prince Edward Island, 

 738,679 bushels; New Brunswick, 381,699 bushels; 

 British Columbia, 359,419 bushels; Nova Scotia, 

 248,476 bushels. As showing further the relative 

 importance of wheat in the different provinces, 

 the average production per farm in 1901 is given: 

 Canada, 117.75 bushels; Manitoba, 576.92 bushels; 

 the Territories, 223.73 bushels; Ontario, 153.24 

 bushels; British Columbia, 60.51 bushels; Prince 

 Edward Island, 56.12 bushels; Quebec, 15.11 bush- 

 els; New Brunswick, 10.86 bushels; Nova Scotia, 

 5.23 bushels. 



Tyves and varieties of wheat. (Figs- 894-901.) 



Cereal ists as well as practical producers of 

 grains are gradually losing sight of those classifi- 

 cations of wheat which are based on purely 

 botanical points. While not failing to recognize 

 the scientific value in such analytical arrangements 

 of the various differences discovered, they incline 

 more and more to a study of those influences of 

 soil, climate, moisture and cultivation which are 

 now recognized as being the real causes of the 

 existing differences, and to classify varieties on 

 a geographical rather than botanical basis. Not- 



* Including South Dakota. 



The seven states having the highest production 

 of wheat in 1906, were: Kansas. 81,830,611 bush- 

 els; North Dakota, 77,896,000 bushels; Minnesota, 

 55,801,591 bushels; Nebraska, 52,288,692 bushels; 

 Indiana, 48,080,925 bushels; Ohio, 43,202,100 

 South Dakota, 41,955,400 bushels. 



t Unusual. 



withstanding this, a statement of the botanical 

 relationships has a proper place in this connection. 

 Botanieal cUissification. — The classification con- 

 ceded to be the most acceptable is that made by 

 Hackel, and the outline here given is that arranged 

 by Hunt. (The Cereals in America, p. 48.) 



/monococcnm (1) Einkom. 



Triticnm - 



/Spelta (2) Spelt, 

 diooccom (3) Emmer. 



sativum , 



tenaz 



Polonicnm (8) Polish wheat. 



(vnlgare (4) common wheat, 

 compactom (5) Clnb or sqaare-head wheat, 

 tnrgidom (6) poniard wheat, 

 dnmm (7) dnnim wheat. 



