470 



Red Fife Wheat. 



[NOV 



berried seed, that this reputation for good tillering is well de- 

 served. Any person looking at the sorts growing in the fiela 

 would not suppose that this much greater thickness of plant 

 existed, and the illusion is probably caused by the fact that 

 the Fife straw has very little flag, which also may account for 

 the fact that the straw weighs well and yields so well per acre. 



It may be interesting to ascertain whether the sowing of less 

 seed per acre will bring about larger ears of Fife, but it has not 

 seemed to suffer in other respects from the plant being too thick 

 hitherto. 



Some growers have reported that Fife wheat was knocked 

 down badly by the severe storms which visited many localities in 

 June, and that its straw is brittle, liable to be broken in thresh- 

 ing. The Homegrown Wheat Committee has realized this 

 tendency to weakness of straw for some time, and has been for 

 some years engaged in remedying the defect by selection and 

 hybridizing. The brittleness is much intensified if the wheat 

 be allowed to get fully or dead ripe. Some at least of the 

 largest growers of the sort have been able by earlier cutting to 

 obtain straw which has been sold at maximum prices. The 

 wheat is one to two weeks earlier than typical English wheats 

 so that on account of its forwardness it was more likely to be 

 damaged by the very severe storm which took place, in the home 

 counties at least, the night following June 28th. The absence 

 of flag should assist it under ordinary circumstances to stand 

 up relatively well. It is worth mentioning in this connection 

 that in the middle of a field of Fife at Addlestone, 18 plots, 

 representing a corresponding number of varieties, were being 

 grown on behalf of the Committee. The storm referred to 

 picked out without exception all the earliest wheats and 

 knocked them perfectly flat to the ground. The Fife, forming 

 the main crop of the field, was not so early as some of the 

 plots, and suffered to a moderate extent only. Squarehead 

 Master in the next field, which was not nearly so forward 

 escaped practically unhurt. 



The Committee has not received a complaint, either last 

 winter or at any previous time in its existence, of Fife suffering, 

 unduly from winter climatic conditions. The evidence is over- 

 whelmingly in favour of autumn sowing in preference to spring 



