Wheat planting

Wheat is grown from the same seeds, or kernels, that people eat. On large scale commercial farms where wheat is grown for sale or export, farmers still sometimes save seed from previous years or they buy seed each year from seed companies.

Wheat is best adapted to cool temperate climates where rainfall is not excessive (40-60 cm per annum). Planting of winter wheat usually occurs in September or early October when the soil has sufficient moisture to germinate the seed. The germinated seed lies dormant during the winter.

Spring wheat is planted as early in the spring as temperatures allow. Five kinds of wheat are commonly grown in the United States and Canada:
*Hard Red Winter – used for bread
*Soft Red Winter Wheat – used for cakes and pastries
*Hard Red Spring Wheat – for bread
*White Wheat – for pastry flour
*Durum wheat – for spaghetti

Before farmers can plant or sow the seed, they have to make sure the soil is healthy and fertile.

When they are ready to plant, some farmers till the soil with plow. Tilling is breaking the soil up so it is soft enough for the seeds to take the root. Most grain do best on well-tilled soil of average fertility – too much nitrogen makes them grow overly lush and topple over.

Once the field has been tilled, the farmers plant their seeds often with a grain drill. The grain drill is a machine that opens a little ditch in the soil, drops the seed in to the right depth, and covers the seed up with more soil.
Wheat planting