July
1926
A later itinerary through Algeria, planned together with Trabut, [Ducellier] and the Department of Agriculture on the basis of the excellent agronomic map published by the French Department of Agriculture, needed in particular to include the areas where bread grains are cultivated. The time for collecting was approaching. We selected the areas of Setif, Timgad and Tiaret which are settled by Arabs. This was the realm of hard wheat, represented by a definitely Mediterranean group with large spikes and large grains, distinct from our usual Soviet ‘Gamov’ and ‘Kuban’ types. Here a considerable area under cereals is also cultivated by French colonists. The agrotechnology is simple: fallow alternating with crops of wheat and, most often, barley. The spaciousness of the land still allows extensive utilization of single crops covering large areas. The sowing is, as a rule, done in the autumn, during the rainy period at the end of October into November. Strange to say, the Arabian settlers of this area are not always inclined to agriculture but prefer an easier way to earn an income, by trading.
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