Orange Devon 2015

BBA Orange Devon 2012 - 2014

Orange Devon 2016/17

As Percival remarks in his "Wheat in Great Britain" Devon Orange Blue Rough Chaff is a type strongly resembling the surviving example of Hen Gymro S70, with its red straw and velvet glume covering. It differs that its flower is not red as with Hen Gymro S70 and the glume has a blue/black colouring especially evident after rain not present in Hen Gymro S70.

Since Percival in his "Wheat in Great Britain" writes "an early to mid-season wheat found among Old Devon" the implication is that although not common it was still to be found in cultivation at least at the time of the book's first edition, 1933. This would make it one of last landrace wheats still to be in cultivation in mainland Britain alongside the Hen Gymro - presumably for similar reasons as with the Hen Gymro, greater reliability (resistance to pre-harvest sprouting) in warm but wet summers of the South West than available early cultivars from seedsmen. The common element with the Hen Gymro S70 of a rough chaff is interesting in relation to this. According to some sources the velvet chaff type originated amongst imports to London known as "Danzig", presumably coming from the Hanseatic League port of that name.

Germplasm link

Orange Devon USDA-ARS (USA) #PI 294573

Orange Devon Bleu Rough Chaff CGN (NLD) #CGN04411

Orange Devon Blue Rough Chaff GRU-JIC (GBR) #W10031