316 CEREALS. 



assumes a golden hue;" so says the London Field. It is 

 very apt to be destroyed by wet weather, on account of the 

 great amount of water held by the long beard and the 

 abundant husk on the grain, and then its value as a malt- 

 maker is destroyed. Hence it should not be stored until 

 perfectly dry. It should not, for the same reason, be 

 shocked until the dew is off. The best plan is to thresh 

 before stacking, but if that is impracticable, let it be tied 

 in small bundles and loosely shocked, or put into hand- 

 stacks, and be extremely careful as to the capping. Let it 

 be done so as to exclude every particle of moisture, and let 

 it be threshed as soon as possible. When the heads once 

 get wet, a stain appears, that will lower the grade and im- 

 pair its value. 



In threshing also, much care must be maintained, as the 

 embryos of the grain are easily knocked off, which will pre- 

 vent it from sprouting, and therefore, it cannot be used for 

 beer. So the thresher must be run light, with fewer spikes 

 than for wheat. After separation from the straw, it must 

 be noticed daily to prevent heating, and it is better to spread 

 it and stir frequently and sell as soon as dry. 



Barley is capable of being cultivated in a greater diver- 

 sity of climates than any of the cereals. On a very slight 

 elevation near the Equator, it has, and is, successfully raised, 

 and there two crops a year are secured, while it has also 

 been cultivated in the frigid regions. Linnaeus found 

 it growing in Lapland in latitude 67° 20', where the 

 barley was harvested on the 28th of July, having been in 

 the ground only six weeks. A gentleman in England 

 sowed at the rate of five pecks on an acre on the 4th of Feb- 

 ruary, and on the 4th of July harvested and secured fifty*, 

 two bushels and two pecks per acre. In both extremes 

 of temperature it matures with astonishing rapidity, thus 

 escaping the droughts of summer and the frosts of winter. 



Barley takes from the soil a large proportion of mineral 

 substances almost equal to wheat, and therefore it is necessary 



