Decrease in durum wheat area and varietal change in Spain from 1888-1963

Abstract

Durum wheat is a wheat species traditionally cultivated in southern and eastern Spain. Its cultivated area in the country before 1964 is unknown. In this study, an estimation of the Spanish acreage of durum wheat from 1888-1963 was reckoned using several sources of information: wheat area by province, descriptions of the prevailing wheat varieties in each province, and estimations from the Servicio Nacional del Trigo (National Service of the Wheat). Six reference seasons were examined (1888, 1898, 1920, 1935, 1950, and 1957). In 1888-1950, the durum wheat cultivated area was estimated to be approximately 16-19% of the total wheat cultivated in Spain (approximately 700,000 ha), which decreased after 1950. This decrease was caused by the introduction of new varieties of bread wheat and the removal of durum wheat varieties of inferior quality. In addition, a species similar to durum, rivet wheat, was also cultivated, of which there were approximately 140,000 by the end of the 19th century, which gradually decreased to almost null by the 1970s