Wheat

Wheat (Triticum aestivum) is a cultivated grass of the Poaceae family with erect hollow, noded stems 60–120 cm tall. Leaves are long and strap-shaped with parallel veins and sheaths wrapping the stem. The inflorescence is an erect spike made of two rows of spikelets on a central axis; each spikelet holds 4–9 florets protected by glumes and bracts. The grain is a small caryopsis containing a starchy embryo covered outside by bran. Triticum aestivum is hexaploid bread wheat with 42 chromosomes (2n = 42), derived from T. turgidum crossed with wild goatgrass Aegilops tauschii. It is self-pollinating. Wheat does not grow wild in Vietnam and is cultivated in temperate, cool-climate areas.

Wheat originated in the Fertile Crescent, domesticated about 10,000 years ago, and today it is the world's most widely grown food plant. Grain is milled into flour — the base of bread, noodles, cakes, biscuits, starch and many flour products; gluten in the dough gives elasticity to baked goods. Bran and germ are rich in B vitamins, fibre and minerals; millfeed is used for livestock and straw for bedding and compost. In upland parts of Vietnam (Sa Pa, Lao Cai, Yen Bai) wheat is grown in winter-spring under cool conditions, while part of the flour used in food processing is imported. Wheat also serves as a winter cover crop, reducing erosion and improving soil structure on the plains.