Bere (grain)

Two-row barley and six-row bere
Field of ready-to-harvest bere, with plots of other varieties still green. Photo taken in late August.
Traditional beremeal bannock, as made on Orkney, Scotland
Hordeum vulgare subsp. hexastichum - MHNT

Bere, pronounced "bear," is a six-row barley cultivated mainly on 5-15 hectares of land in Orkney, Scotland. It is also grown in Shetland, Caithness and on a very small scale by a few crofters on some of the Western Isles, such as North Uist, Benbecula, South Uist, Islay and Barra. It is probably Britain's oldest cereal in continuous commercial cultivation.[1]

Bere is a landrace adapted to growing on soils with a low pH (acidic) and to a short growing season with long hours of daylight, as found in the high latitudes of northern Scotland. It is sown in the spring and harvested in the summer. Because of its very rapid growth rate it is sown late but is often the first crop to be harvested. It is known locally as "the 90-day barley."[2][3]

  1. ^ Martin, Peter; Xianmin Chang (June 2008). "Bere Whisky: rediscovering the spirit of an old barley". The Brewer & Distiller International. 4 (6): 41–43. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  2. ^ The Scottish Government, ed. (2002). "Chapter 14: A Detailed Review of the Contribution Made to Biodiversity by Scots Bere". The Status of Traditional Scottish Animal Breeds and Plant Varieties and the Implications for Biodiversity. The Scottish Government. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  3. ^ Theobald, H. E.; et al. (2006). "The nutritional properties of flours derived from Orkney grown bere barley (Hordeum vulgare L.)". Nutrition Bulletin. 31 (31): 8–14. doi:10.1111/j.1467-3010.2006.00528.x.