Spelt
$4.00
(Triticum aestivum var. spelta)
I don’t have a varietal name for this spelt; we started to grow it before I started worrying about that. It does well for us. We plant in fall; it should emerge before freezing forces it into dormancy, then wait all winter and begin growing rapidly in spring. When mature, it will be 3-4’ tall and a beautiful gold. The straw, by the way, is very good for plaiting; we wear hats made from it. 290 days to maturity? Winter annual harvested in late July. 110 seeds/packet.
In stock
Plant 1/2-2” deep, a few inches apart; preferably in rows 7-9” apart, but can also be broadcast and raked to cover. Plant in the fall, sometime around the first frost. Harvest when seed is at ‘hard dough’ stage, dentable by not easily crushed; make into sheaves and stook to cure until fully dry and hard. Thresh and winnow; spelt must be dehulled before eating, but is best planted still in its hulls.
To use straw for weaving, harvest when topmost joint in stem is still a little green.