Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1900-12-08
FARM AND GARDEN.
MATTERS OF INTEREST TO
AGRICULTURISTS
Some Up-to-Date Hints About Cultiva-
tion of the Soil and Yields Thereof
Horticulture. yiticulture and Fioricul-
ture.
wheats and Spells.

Wheats and Spelts-
A communication from Prof. A. s.
Hitchcock of the Kansas Agricultural
College says: The wheats of the
world are all referred by botanists to
three species, which form a natural
group among the grasses.
L One-grained wheat (Triticum
monococcum, L.) This wheat is of
great antiquity as is shown by its
presence in the Swiss Lake dwellings
of the Stone age. 1t is now cultivated
to a considerable extent in Spain and
more rarely in some other countries
of South Europe. 1t is not often used
for bread, but for mush and cracked
wheat" and for fodder.
2. Polish wheat (Tr. Polonicum, Id
This did not originate in Poland, but
probably in Spain. 1t is now grown
in that country and also Italy and
Abyssinia. The grain resembles rye.
The heads are very large and of
blue-green color. The Polish wheat of
Russia which is being introduced by
the U. S. Department of Agriculture
and is being tried by the experiment
stations of this country is not the true
Polish wheat, but variety of common
wheat
! 8. Common wheat and Spelt Ctr
sativum, Lam.) This group is divided
into three races.
! /. Spelt (Tr. Spelta, L. This was
anciently the chief grain of Egypt and
Greece, and was commonly cultivated
i'm the Roman empire. At present it
is cultivated in few localities IN
South Europe.
II. Emmer (Tr. dicoccum, Schrank)
This grain is cultivated more or less
i'm countries of South Europe and in
parts of Russia. Mr. NJ. A Carleton
Iof the United States Department of
Agriculture has introduced varieties
OF this for trial. 1t was tried by the
experiment station of the Kansas Ag-
iricultural College, but failed to mature.
1T is often called Russian spe1t, but
Is different from the true spelt In
Russia it is sometimes used for max
ing bread, but more often for cruel or
'porridge. This is advertised by the
John A. Salzer Seed Company, under
the name of ''speltz.'' Seed obtained
from that firm failed to produce crop
at the Kansas Experiment Station,
only few heads being formed and
these not producing grain. Like the
preceding group, the Emmers are
characterized by the fact that the grain
remains within the chaff when
threshed. The heads are usually
awned, but the awns (beards) are re-
moved in the threshing
III. True wheats. This race falls
into four more or less well-marked
sub-races.
a. English wheat CTr. turgidum
Id Leaves broad and usually clothed
with velvety hairs. The grain is plump
and truncate or cut off at the upper
end. This wheat is cultivated in Medi-
terranean countries and more rarely in
England. 1t is poor in gluten and
makes a grayish flour. The so-called
Miracle Egyptian or Mummy wheats
(Tr. compositum, L.), form a group of
varieties of this SUFFRAGE which orig
mated as a sport Their culture is not
profitable, as the grains develop un-
equally.
b. Macaroni, Durum or Flint wheats
(Tr. Durum. Desf.) The heads have
long, bristly awns like barley. The
grain is very hard and Is used extern
sively for making macaroni and SINH
lar products Grows in Mediterranean
countries. In Russia it is used for
making bread. mixed with 10 to 25
per cent of soft red wheat. The Kan
sas Experiment Station has some of
these Russian varieties under trial
C. Dwarf and Hedgehog wheat (Tr.
compactum, Host.) These varieties
are grown in the mountainous regions
of Europe, Chilli, Turkestan and Abys-
sinia, but are of little interest to us.
d. Common wheat (Tr. vulgare,
Vill.) The varieties Of this SUFFRAGE
are the common forms cultivated in
the United States and need no further
description at this point The soft
wheats contain less gluten, the pro-
nounced sorts. such as the English
wheat mentioned above under (a), are
better adapted for making starch than
baking. The very hard kinds are over
rich in gluten, and bread made from
them is too firm They are used for
making macaroni, cracked wheats"
and mush- Several promising Russian
varieties are being tried at the Kansas
Experiment Station and were crossed
this season with some of our best Kan
sas varieties