Purple Straw Wheat

This wheat first emerged from the Virginia Piedmont region during the era of the American Revolution. Despite a modest yield, its adoption among Mid-Atlantic and Southern grain growers was both wide-reaching and remarkably swift. In the words of food historian David Shields, this period of turmoil was a major catalyst for the rise of Purple Straw, “[setting] in motion a number of developments that would cause the eclipse of the old settler wheats of the colonial era”.

Devastating seed shortages were the first of these developments, soon followed by the introduction of the Hessian Fly, which some believe to have hitched a ride in the straw bedding of the Hessian mercenaries fighting for England. From that moment on, the fly brought immense devastation to grain crops as it migrated through the newly united colonies each year. Purple Straw’s popularity had a simple cause. It could be harvested 15-20 days earlier than nearly any other variety, giving farmers just enough time to harvest before the fly’s late-summer arrival.

This heritage grain helped to keep the United States fed while this country was still fighting to establish its very existence. While still widely grown up until the 20th century, it too was eventually replaced by newcomers and was believed to be extinct until its rediscovery in 2015.

Last Grown in 2024