Britain. It takes its name of cone from the 
somewhat conical form of its ears,—square, from 
the somewhat quadrangular setting of its spike- 
lets,—pendulum, from the pendulous position of 
its ear as it approaches maturity,—and antifly, 
from its having almost wholly resisted the wheat- 
fly at a time when that insect worked great havoc 
among most other varieties of wheat. Its straw 
is long, strong, and-hollow; its ear is very white 
and velvety, about 4 inches long and # of an 
inch broad at the base, tapering towards the 
point, quadrangular, compact, and very regular; 
its principal awns are straight, about as long as 
the ear, and placed in four straight rows along 
the angles,—its subordinate awns rise in two 
rows from the outer palee of the middle fertile 
florets, and lie close on the ear,—and all gener- 
ally break off when ripe, particularly in windy 
weather, leaving the whole ear apparently beard- 
less; its lower and central spikelets contain 
each three or four fertile florets, and the upper 
ones generally two; its glumes and palex are 
short and very round, and the latter scarcely 
cover the seed when ripe; and its grains are 
soft, whitish yellow, a little compressed and 
wrinkled, and considerably larger than those of 
the ordinary common-eared wheats. This wheat 
is nearly a fortnight longer in ripening than the 
common white winter wheat; it is a vigorous 
grower, and is thought to be rather an impover- 
ishing crop for the soil; it yields a scanty supply 
of foliage, yet is one of the most beautiful wheats 
when growing which can well be imagined ; and, 
in favourable circumstances, it often yields sev- 
eral bolls of grains per acre more than the com- 
mon wheats,—but the sample is inferior, and not 
well liked by bakers. It is found to answer best 
on strong clay soils. 
The red, grey, or blue cone wheat, or red, 
grey, or blue Rivet wheat, bears a general re- 
semblance to the preceding variety; but its ears 
have a reddish-blue or ash colour, and its grains 
are darker in colour than those of the white cone 
wheat, and rather more flinty. It is cultivated 
in England and the north of France, generally 
on strong clay soils; and it is very hardy in 
constitution, and very late in ripening. 
The common Rivet wheat of England is culti- 
vated on the strongest clay soils in the south of 
England, but is so late in arriving at maturity 
that it may be regarded as unfit for the north of 
England, or for any part of Scotland. Its ear is 
smaller and less compact than that of the white 
cone wheat; its awns are less liable to be broken 
off or blown away when ripe; its glumes and 
pales are considerably larger and more elon- 
gated; and its grains also are longer and more 
flinty. | 
The Pole Rivet wheat of England is also cul- 
tivated on strong soils in England, and is very 
late in ripening; and it is likewise much culti- 
vated in the southern and eastern districts of 
France. Its ear has a lightish-brown colour, 
and is more compressed and irregularly shaped 
than that of the common Rivet wheat of Eng- 
land, and—contrary to the general rule of turgid 
wheats—it has the insertion of the spikelets into 
the rachis on its broadest side; its awns fall off 
when ripe; its lower spikelets contain each four 
fertile florets, and its upper ones three; and its 
grains are long, reddish, and flinty. 
The Turkey wheat, or the Turkey great turgid 
wheat, appears to be a subvariety of the Pole 
Rivet wheat of England; and it is from a fort- 
night to three weeks later in ripening than the 
common white winter wheat. Its ear is larger, 
thicker, and more regularly square than that of 
the Pole Rivet wheat of England, and has a red- 
dish-ash colour; and its grains are larger and of 
a darker colour, and form a rather coarse sample. 
The St. Helena giant wheat, or St. Helena 
giant turgid wheat, was introduced to France 
from St. Helena, and reintroduced from Dantzic. 
Its ears are larger and more irregularly formed 
than those of the preceding varieties of the tur- 
gid wheats ; its lower spikelets are more enlarged, 
and diverge in a zigzag manner to the sides; and 
its grains are large, about 3? lines long, flinty, 
and similar in quality to those of the Turkey 
wheat, but more prolific. This wheat also is late 
in ripening. 
The Petanielle wheat, or Petanielle black tur- 
gid wheat, is distinguished among all the other 
turgid wheats for the height of its straw, the 
dark colour of its ears and awns, and the large- 
ness and abundance of its grains; and it came 
into much demand about 16 years ago in the 
neighbourhood of Paris, and was introduced 
there from the south of France, 
off when ripe; its glumes and pales have a shin- 
ing bluish-black colour; and its grains are harder 
and darker coloured than those of other turgid 
wheats, and at the same time possess all their | 
peculiar defects. 
The Egyptian wheat, Egyptian cone wheat, | 
Abyssinian wheat, Smyrna wheat, reed wheat, 
compound-eared wheat, or branching-eared wheat, 
is sometimes undistinguishable from the ordinary 
turgid wheats, but at other times has a ramified 
or compound ear of a form as if several ears were 
tied together, and is therefore treated by most 
botanists as a distinct species under the name 
of Triticum compositum. It certainly is almost | 
unique in the property of producing a compound | 
ear; but it by no means possesses this property 
essentially or constantly; and seems merely to | 
be a true turgid wheat in poor or ordinary cir- 
cumstances, with a constitutional power of de- 
veloping compound ears on rich soils or under 
good or favourable conditions of culture. Its 
straw is stiff, long, and nearly solid or filled with 
pith; its glumes and palew are slightly downy, 
and have a glaucous reddish colour; and its 
grains are short, whitish - brown, and rather 
flinty. Its produce in grain is very abundant 
under favourable circumstances of soil, climate, 
Its awns fall | 
