Herb: Bread Wheat


Latin name: Triticum aestivum


Synonyms: Triticum sativum, Triticum vulgare


Family: Gramineae (Grass Family)



Medicinal use of Bread Wheat:

The young stems are used in the treatment of biliousness and intoxication. The ash is used to remove skin blemishes. The fruit is antipyretic and sedative. The light grain is antihydrotic. It is used in the treatment of night sweats and spontaneous sweating. The seed is said to contain sex hormones and has been used in China to promote female fertility. The seed sprouts are antibilious, antivinous and constructive. They are used in the treatment of malaise, sore throat, thirst, abdominal coldness and spasmic pain, constipation and cough. The plant has anticancer properties.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Annual


Height:
150 cm
(5 feet)

Flowering:
June
to July

Habitat of the herb:

Not known in the wild.

Edible parts of Bread Wheat:

Seed - cooked. The seed can be cooked as a whole grain but it is more usually ground into a powder and used as a flour for making bread, fermented foods, pasta, cakes, biscuits etc. High in gluten, it is the most common flour used for making bread. The seed can also be sprouted and then added to salads or juiced to make a healthy drink. A nutritional analysis is available.

Other uses of the herb:

The straw has many uses, as a biomass for fuel etc, for thatching, as a mulch in the garden etc. A fibre obtained from the stems is used for making paper. 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 1? hours in a ball mill. The fibres make a green-tan paper. The starch from the seed is used for laundering, sizing textiles etc.

Propagation of Bread Wheat:

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

Cultivation of the herb:

Not known in the wild.

Known hazards of Triticum aestivum:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.