Menu list goes here

Herbal Database Search Results

Back to: Pathways Main Search Page For Metaphysical uses visit The Witchs Haven

Triticum turgidum dicoccon

Common name:	Emmer	Family:	Gramineae
Author:	(Schrank.)Thell.	Botanical references:	50
Synonyms:	Triticum dicoccon ((Schrank.)Schü bl.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Original habitat is obscure.
Habitat:	Developed through cultivation, it is not known in a truly wild location.
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Gigachilon aethiopicum[G] Gigachilon polonicum subsp. dicoccon[G] T. aestivum var. dicoccon[G] T. aethiopicum[G] T. armeniacum[G] T. dicoccoides[B,P] T. dicoccon subsp. asiaticum[G] T. dicoccon var. farrum[G] T. dicoccum[B,P] T. farrum[G] T. jakubzineri[G] T. spelta var. dicoccon[G] T. spelta var. dicoccum[B,P] T. turgidum[B,G,L,P] T. turgidum subsp. dicoccon[G] T. turgidum subsp. jakubzineri[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Emmer [P], Rivet Wheat [P,B,L],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Cyperales. Renamed to Poaceae -- Grass family

Physical Characteristics

Annual. It is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to July, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Seed.

Seed - cooked[46, 61, 105]. It is usually ground into a flour and used as a cereal for making bread, biscuits etc[183]. The seed retains its glumes when it is threshed[50, 57]

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Biomass Mulch Paper Starch Thatching.

The straw has many uses, as a biomass for fuel etc, for thatching, as a mulch in the garden etc[141].
A fibre obtained from the stems is used for making paper[189]. The stems are harvested in late summer after the seed has been harvested, they are cut into usable pieces and soaked in clear water for 24 hours. They are then cooked for 2 hours in lye or soda ash and then beaten in a ball mill for 1½ hours in a ball mill. The fibres make a green-tan paper[189].
The starch from the seed is used for laundering, sizing textiles etc[46, 61]. It can also be converted to alcohol for use as a fuel.

Cultivation details

An easily grown plant, it succeeds in most well-drained soils in a sunny position. Succeeds in poor rocky[57] and in dry soils[171].
One of the oldest cultivated wheats, it arose over 10,000 years ago through cultivation of the wild emmer, T. dicoccoides. Its cultivation is declining but it is still grown in some mountainous regions of Europe[46, 50, 57, 183]. There are some named varieties[46]. A rather low yielding species compared to modern cultivars.
It is believed that a cross between this species and Aegilops squarrosa, probably about 8,000 years ago, introduced an extra protein gene into the seed making a much stronger flour for baking as bread. Most modern species and cultivars of wheat have been developed from this cross.
A tetraploid species[142].

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring or autumn in situ and only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within a few days[K].

Cultivars

'': No entries have been made for this species as yet.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

References for Triticum dicoccon (a possible synonym).

[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Triticum turgidum (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Triticum turgidum subsp. dicoccon (a possible synonym).

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[141] Carruthers. S. P. (Editor) Alternative Enterprises for Agriculture in the UK. Centre for Agricultural Strategy, Univ. of Reading 1986 ISBN 0704909820
Some suggested alternative commercial crops for Britain. Readable. Produced by a University study group.

[142] Brouk. B. Plants Consumed by Man. Academic Press 1975 ISBN 0-12-136450-x
Readable but not very comprehensive.

[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[189] Bell. L. A. Plant Fibres for Papermaking. Liliaceae Press 1988
A good practical section on how to make paper on a small scale plus details of about 75 species (quite a few of them tropical) that can be used.

Readers Comments

Main Search Page Help Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Triticum+turgidum+dicoccon
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Triticum+turgidum+dicoccon

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
(You can copy, distribute, display this works but: Attribution is required, its for Non-Commercial purposes, and it's Share Alike (GNUish/copyleft) i.e. has an identical license.)
We also ask that you let us know (michael@thewitchshaven.com) if you link to, redistribute, make a derived work or do anything groovy with this information.

Pathways Home :: View Cart :: Shipping & Returns :: Contact Us :: Privacy Policy :: Philosophy :: The Witchs Haven

We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.