Emmer

|genus = Triticum |species = dicoccum |authority = Schrank ex Schübl. |synonyms = |synonyms_ref = |}}

Emmer is an awned type of wheat. It is a tetraploid (4''n'' = 28 chromosomes). The domesticated types are ''Triticum turgidum'' subsp. ''dicoccum'' and ''T. t. ''conv.'' durum''. The wild plant is called ''T. t.'' subsp. ''dicoccoides''. The principal difference between the wild and the domestic forms is that the ripened seed head of the wild plant shatters and scatters the seed onto the ground, while in the domesticated emmer, the seed head remains intact, thus making it easier for people to harvest the grain.

Along with einkorn, emmer was one of the first crops domesticated in the Near East. It was widely cultivated in the ancient world, but is now a relict crop in mountainous regions of Europe and Asia. Emmer is one of the three grains called ''farro'' in Italy. Provided by Wikipedia