Hi all,
I'm quite new to the allotment scene, getting my first plot last year and having some success with the "standard" root crops. Now I've got the bug and want to try something a bit more adventurous....
Having had the opportunity to double up on plot size, I fancy having a go at growing wheat.
Can anyone advise where to obtain some seed for spring wheat? Any variety recommendations?
I'm in the West of Scotland so a variety that likes the dark, cold and being underwater would be ideal!!
Any advice much appreciated.
Thanks in advance,
Malky.
Hi Malky
Generally speaking, the older the variety, the easier it is to grow on a small scale.
The best place to get information about heritage wheat varieties is the Brockwell Bake charity --
The Brockwell Bake - from sowing to baking - S. London 2008-2021Varieties vary but no wheat likes to be really wet. Hence the majority of grain grown in the West of Scotland has always been oats. For a first grain experiment I'd be more inclined to try them.?
What is your soil like?
Bere and other old barley types are tougher than new varieties but they still like dry/free draining soil. Bere has lighter heads so is less likely to flop over in wind.
Here in the Hebrides the tradition is to sow a local mix of old type "small oats" Avena Strigosa, rye, and Bere barley. Getting hold of some of the mix is nigh on impossible. I've tried for years. No one on Tiree, Coll, Lewis or Mull still does it. The Uists seem to be the only place still using the original Landrace mixes & they guard their seed like a dragon's gold. (!) Those mixtures were developed over hundreds of years to suit the "machair" - very free-draining, sandy soil.
Like I say - if it was me I'd go for oats. :-)
Windy.
Edited to try to add a wheat growing guide but can't get the link to work. If you look on the Brockwell site for "teachers' guide" that's quite a good one. The main thing to remember is old varieties need less nitrogen than modern ones otherwise they get too leggy. So no manure the year it goes in. In a rotation, it would usually go after tatties & before legumes.
W.
