Wheat
Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain which is a worldwide staple food.The many species of wheat together make up the genus Triticum; the most widely grown is common wheat (T. aestivum). The archaeological record suggests that wheat was first cultivated in the regions of the Fertile Crescent around 9600 BCE. Botanically, the wheat kernel is a type of fruit called a caryopsis.
scientific classification
Family: Poaceae
Genus: Triticum; L.
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Poales
variety :
There are around 30,000 wheat varieties of 14 species grown throughout the world. Of these about 1,000 are commercially significant. In the United States over 500 varieties are available. In Canada different varieties are blended prior to sale. "Identity preserved" wheat that has been stored and transported separately usually fetches a higher price.
Farming techniques
Technological advances in soil preparation and seed placement at planting time, use of crop rotation and fertilizers to improve plant growth, and advances in harvesting methods have all combined to promote wheat as a viable crop. When the use of seed drills replaced broadcasting sowing of seed in the 18th century, another great increase in productivity occurred.
Genetics and breeding
In traditional agricultural systems wheat populations often consist of landraces, informal farmer-maintained populations that often maintain high levels of morphological diversity. Although landraces of wheat are no longer grown in Europe and North America, they continue to be important elsewhere. The origins of formal wheat breeding lie in the nineteenth century, when single line varieties were created through selection of seed from a single plant noted to have desired properties.
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