76 Report on the Competition for Seed- Wheat, 1880. 
and opportunity for the production of new varieties by experi- 
ment or selection. 
Six samples were delivered at the Society's Office by the time 
required for the first competition. Of these, four were white 
varieties, and two were red. In the terms of this competition 
it was stated that a portion of each of these samples was to be 
retained for comparison, and the remainder, divided into equal 
portions, was to be cultivated in 1880 in four localities differing 
in soil and climate, and the prizes were to be awarded to the 
varieties which gave the best results, if the Judges considered 
these varieties possessed qualities which entitled them to 
distinction. 
The characteristics of the competing grains are described by 
their respective owners as follows : 
No. 1 White Wheat was sent in by James Long, Henlow, 
Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, under the name " Selected Hard- 
castle." It was described as having a white and heavy grain, 
with a thin skin, a thick-set ear of medium length, and usually a 
rather short straw. It was selected from an old variety because 
of the fulness and largeness of the ear, and of its singular freedom 
from mildew. 
No. 2 White Wheat was sent in by John Tuckey, Parsonage 
Farm, Goring, Oxfordshire, under the name " Webb's New 
Challenge White." It was described as having a very plump 
grain, a large ear, and long, stout straw. It was raised after 
careful and repeated selection, on the extensive seed-farm of 
Messrs. Webb at Windsor Hill, Staffordshire. 
No. 3 White Wheat was sent in by Wm. Henry Mold, 
Bethersden, Ashford, Kent, under the name of" Mold's Ennobled 
White Wheat." It was described as having a medium-sized 
grain, with qualities commending it to the miller ; long and 
well-filled ears, and long and stiff straw, which stands well. 
Many years ago the competitor got the best white wheat he 
could and " ennobled " it until he got 105 heads from a single 
grain, some 8 inches long, and 131 grains in a head. 
No. 4 White Wheat was sent in by Charles Shirreff Dods, of 
Haddington, under the name " Climax." It was described as 
having a longish, thin-skinned, and clear grain ; a long ear, rather 
wide between the notches, and a strong and bright yellow straw, 
somewhat darker toward the ears. It was raised from one grain, 
obtained in 1864, of a cross between "King Richard " and 
" Red Tuscany." " King Richard," the female parent, was 
raised by the late Patrick Shirreff by crossing " Sliirreff's 
Bearded White " with " Talavera." In a letter Mr. Dods says 
that the whole stock sent was grown from one grain of 1875, 
