1.I am sure that you have all had some bread to eat to-day.How many of you know what bread is made of？The baker makes it of flour mixed with water，and some yeast，and a little salt.These things mixed together make a thick paste，called dough.Dough is made into bread by baking it in an oven.
HARVEST-TIME（收获的时节）
2.The white flour is got by grinding the grains or seeds of wheat.But the farmer does not grind all his wheat.He sows someof it in his fields，and in a few weeks he sees long narrow leaves springing up，just like blades of grass.
3.Then the stem of the plant appears，and it grows to a height of three or four feet.This stem is hollow and jointed.If you look at the stems of grasses，you will see that they are just the same.
4.In autumn，an “ear”forms at the end of each stem.It is made up of many grains of wheat，each of which has a hard covering or husk.
5.The ears and seeds of grasses are very like the ears and seeds of wheat，only they are much smaller.So we know that wheat is nothing but a large kind of grass.
6.But wheat is not a wild grass.It was once a wild grass；but it has been takenEARS OF WHEAT（小麦穗）care of for a great many years.It has beensown in good ground；and so it now grows tall，and its seeds are very large.
7.It is just the same with children.Boys and girls who are well taken care of by their good fathers and mothers grow bigger and stronger than very poor children，who have no one to look after them.
8.There are several other kinds of grain that were once，like wheat，only wild grasses.These are barley，oats，rice，and rye.If we pull up any of these plants，we shall find that their roots are little white threads，just like the roots of all grasses.
9.Did you ever notice the flowers of the wheat-plant and of the wild grasses？You will have tolook very closely to see them，but there they are-very small flowers of a green colour.
FLOWER OF WHEAT
（小麦花）
THE BAKER（100年前英国的面包师傅）
10.The dry，yellow stems of the wheat-plant are called straw.The straw hats which you use in summer are made of the stems of wheat，orof some plant of the same kind.Get some straw and see if you can plait it in the same way as this：-This is the way straw hats are made.
SUMMARY
Wheat is a large kind of grass，called grain，which grows from seed.Long，narrow leaves spring up，then hollow and jointed stems appear，and in the autumn an ear made up of many grains or seeds of wheat forms at the end of each stem.The seeds are ground into flour，which，when mixed with water，yeast，and salt，is made into bread.Other grains are barley，oats，rice，and rye.
【中文阅读】
1．小朋友，你们今天一定都吃过面包了吧？你们有多少人知道，面包是什么做的？面包师傅用面粉和上水，再加上酵母和一点儿盐。这些东西混在一起，就成了一种很粘的浆糊一样的东西，叫“生面团”（dough）。生面团在炉子里烤过之后，就成了面包。①2．白面粉，是把小麦的麦粒，或者叫种子，磨碎了做出来的。但是农民并不会把所有的麦粒都磨碎。有一些要播到农田里，过几个星期，就能看见又窄又长的叶子长出来了，跟草叶一样。②3．然后，小麦的茎也出现了，会长到三四英尺的高度③，小麦的茎是空心、分节的。看看青草的茎，也是这个样子。
4．秋天，每一根茎的顶端都会长出一个“穗子”（ear）。④穗子是很多颗麦粒组成的，每颗麦粒都有一个硬壳，也叫“麦糠”（husk）。
5．野草的穗子和种子，跟小麦的穗子和种子一样，只是小得多。这样，我们就知道了，小麦也是一种“个头儿”比较大的草。
6．不过，小麦可不是野草。很久以前小麦是野草，但是人们种小麦，已经种了很多很多年，一直种在肥沃的土地上，于是小麦现在就长高了，种子也很大了。⑤7．这跟小朋友们是一样的。那些让爸爸妈妈照顾得很好的孩子，长得就比家境不好的孩子高，也比他们壮。因为家境不好的孩子，受的照顾也不好。⑥8．还有其他几种谷子，很久以前，跟小麦一样，也是野草。这些谷子有：大麦、燕麦、稻米、黑麦。把这些植物拔起来，就会看见，它们的根是细小的白丝，跟所有的草根一样。
9．你注意过小麦和野草的花么？要靠得很近，才能看见，但它们还是有花的，是一种非常小的绿色花朵。⑦10．小麦的茎，干了之后发黄，叫做麦秆。小朋友在夏天戴的草帽，就是麦秆或者其他类似的植物做的。拿点儿麦秆，看你能不能把它编成这个样子？草帽就是这么编出来的。
译注
①面包是传统的西方主食，虽然在中国越来越受欢迎，但依然代替不了米饭、饼、馒头等传统的中国主食。馒头和面包都是用酵母菌发酵的，区别在于原料和制作方法。面包在制作时加盐，还经常加糖和脂肪，为的是提供更好的质地和口感，而馒头一般不加这些东西；面包的制作方法是烘烤，而馒头是用蒸汽蒸出来的。
②小麦是最重要的农作物之一，全世界总产量排名第二（第一是玉米，第三是稻米）。
③也就是91-122厘米。
④怎么跟“耳朵”的英语单词一样呢？我也不知道。亲爱的读者，你知道吗？
⑤历史上培育小麦成就最大的人，大概是美国的“绿色革命之父”诺曼·博洛格（Norman Borlaug，1914-2009），1944-1960年期间，他培养出了抗病、高产的“半矮秆小麦”，让小麦产量大幅度提高，对消除全世界的饥荒作出了无与伦比的贡献。为此他在1970年获得了诺贝尔和平奖。他和中国的“杂交水稻之父”袁隆平一样，改造的都是种植量最大、对人类最重要的农作物。
⑥这是一个不太准确的比方。现代小麦植株的高大，是很多代遗传变异和人工选择的结果，属于“先天性状”，可以遗传给下一代。当然，同一批小麦也会因为在成长中受到的照料不同，而有发育好坏的区别，但这种“后天性状”不会遗传。孩子们出生之后的生活环境，造成的发育的差别，也属于“后天性状”，不会遗传。但是人类的肤色等一部分特征，是长期适应环境的结果，可以遗传。
⑦小麦花不光很小，开的时间还非常短，一般只有15-20分钟，而昙花开花还能持续3-4个小时呢。
THE PERIWINKLE