Emmer

For other uses, see Emmer (disambiguation).

Emmer wheat
Spikes (ears) of cultivated emmer wheat
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Pooideae
Genus: Triticum
Species:
T. dicoccum
Binomial name
Triticum dicoccum
Synonyms[4]
  • Spelta amylea (Ser.) Ser.
  • Triticum amyleum Ser.
  • Triticum armeniacum (Stolet.) Nevski
  • Triticum arras Hochst.
  • Triticum atratum Host
  • Triticum cienfuegos Lag.
  • Triticum dicoccum Schrank.[3]
  • Triticum dicoccoides
  • Triticum farrum Bayle-Bar.
  • Triticum gaertnerianum Lag.
  • Triticum immaturatum Flaksb. nom. inval.
  • Triticum ispahanicum Heslot
  • Triticum karamyschevii Nevski
  • Triticum maturatum Flaksb. nom. inval.
  • Triticum palaecocolchicum (Menabde) L.B. Cai
  • Triticum palaeocolchicum Menabde
  • Triticum subspontaneum (Tzvelev) Czerep.
  • Triticum tricoccum Schübl.
  • Triticum volgense (Flaksb.) Nevski
Look up emmer in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Emmer wheat or hulled wheat[3] is a type of awned wheat. Emmer is a tetraploid (4n = 4x = 28 chromosomes).[5] The domesticated types are Triticum turgidum subsp. dicoccum and T. t. conv. durum. The wild plant is called T. t. subsp. dicoccoides. The principal difference between the wild and the domestic forms is that the ripened seed head of the wild plant shatters and scatters the seed onto the ground, while in the domesticated emmer, the seed head remains intact, thus making it easier for people to harvest the grain.[6]

Along with einkorn wheat, emmer was one of the first crops domesticated in the Near East. It was widely cultivated in the ancient world, but is now a relict crop in mountainous regions of Europe and Asia.

Emmer is considered a type of farro food, especially in Italy.[3]

  1. ^ Zair, W. & Magos Brehm, J. (2017). "Triticum turgidum Wild Emmer". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T71786841A71786853. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T71786841A71786853.en.
  2. ^ "Tropicos.org". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  3. ^ a b c "Triticum turgidum subsp. dicoccon". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  4. ^ "The Plant List: A Working List of All Plant Species". Retrieved June 30, 2014.
  5. ^ "Complex Bread Wheat Genome Cracked". Nat Geo Food. 17 July 2017. Archived from the original on July 17, 2014.
  6. ^ Weiss, Ehud and Zohary, Daniel (October 2011), "The Neolithic Southwest Asian Founder Crops", Current Anthropology, Vo 52, Supplement 4, p. S240