CLASSIFICATION OF AMERICAN WHEAT VARIETIES. 



131 



mm. long; awns 3 to 7 cm. long; kernels white, long, soft, elliptical, acute; 

 germ small to midsized ; crease narrow, shallow ; cheeks usually rounded ; brush 

 small, usually long. 



The above description is for only one of several strains of Tread well wheat. 



History. — Treadwell wheat was recorded in the Rural New Yorker in 1868 as 

 having originated " in Michigan and is probably a hybrid." Several other early 

 references refer to Treadwell wheat as a mixed variety. An awnless white- 

 kerneled strain and an awned red-kerneled strain had been developed from it 

 as early as 1882. The awnless white-kerneled strain was known as Smooth 

 Treadwell and the awned red-kerneled strain as Bearded Treadwell (81, p. 27). 

 The original wheat is thought to have been 

 mostly of the type described above. 



Distribution. — Reported in 1919 from Oak- 

 land and Tuscola Counties, Mich. In Tus- 

 cola County it was described as above, 

 while in Oakland County it was reported to 

 be an awnless wheat, having white kernels. 



BAAET (EAKLY BAAKT). 



Description. — Plant spring habit, early, 

 midtall to tall ; stem white, midstrong ; spike 

 awned, fusiform, middense, inclined ; glumes 

 glabrous, white, long, narrow; shoulders 

 narrow, oblique to square; beaks 3 to 5 

 mm. long ; awns 3 to 6 cm. long ; kernels 

 white, long, soft to semihard, ovate to ob- 

 pyriform ; germ small ; crease narrow, shal- 

 low ; cheeks usually rounded ; brush mid- 

 sized, short to midlong. 



This variety can be distinguished from 

 all others by the yellowish pear-shaped 

 kernels. A spike, glumes, and kernels of Baart wheat are shown in Plate 

 XXXVI, B. 



History. — The Early Baart was received with four other varieties (197, S'. P- 1. 

 No. 5078) from Australia by the United States Department of Agriculture in 

 1900. The commercial distribution of the variety in this country certainly is 

 the result of this introduction. In Australia it has never been a leading com- 

 mercial variety, although it has been grown by some farmers for many years. 

 In recent introductions of wheat from South Africa varieties have been obtained 

 which are identical with Early Baart. The name " Baart " is Dutch for 

 bearded. It seems probable that the variety was introduced to Australia from 

 the Orange River Colony or the Transvaal in South Africa and was originally 

 of European origin (67, p. 3). 



The variety probably was first distributed for commercial growing by the 

 Arizona Agricultural Experiment Station, which obtained its original seed from 

 the Office of Cereal Investigations, United States Department of Agriculture. 

 The variety was well established in Arizona by 1914, when it was first grown in 

 Washington, and later spread to Oregon, Idaho, and California. 



Distribution. — Grown in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, 

 Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington. (Fig. 52.) 



Synonyms. — Arizona Baart, Columbia, Diener Hybrids, Diener No. 18, and 

 White Columbia. Arizona Baart is a name often used for the variety, because 

 it first became commercially established in Arizona. Columbia and White 

 Columbia are local names used for Early Baart wheat in the vicinity of Fair- 



Fig. 52. — Outline map of the west- 

 ern United States, showing the 

 distribution of Baart wheat in 

 1919. Estimated area, 500,500 

 acres. 



