Crop of the Week in Review: Wheat, Spinach, Black-Eyed Peas and Cantaloupe

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WHEAT

*Yuma County grew about 437,000 acres of durum wheat in 2005 valued at more than $18 million. The Yuma area ranks No. 1 in wheat production in Arizona, averaging more than 3 tons of grain per acre.

*Durum wheat contains the highest proportion of protein of any of the classes of wheat and is primarily used in the production of pasta, spaghetti, macaroni and other various pastas. Due to its high protein content, durum wheat flour is not suitable for breads or pastries.

*Today, between 60 and 63 million acres of wheat are harvested each year in the U.S. If all the acres were side by side, the wheat fields would cover more than 100,000 square miles, one-third the size of the state of Texas.

*About 50 percent of the crop is exported, making the U.S. the largest exporter of wheat in the world.

*It is reported that as early as 6700 B.C., man ground grains with rocks for nourishment. The workers who built the pyramids in Egypt were paid in bread.

*Wheat is not native to the United States and was not even grown by the colonists. It was first planted in this country in 1777 as a hobby crop.

*In 1998, the United States added folic acid to all enriched grain foods, including bread. Folic acid is a key ingredient in preventing serious birth defects.

*Wheat foods are considered a reliable source of iron, which transports oxygen to every cell in your body.

*One bushel of wheat contains approximately 1 million individual kernels, and yields enough flour for 73 one-pound loaves of white bread.

*There is approximately 5 cents worth of wheat in each loaf of bread sold.

*More foods are made with wheat than any other cereal grain.

*New uses of wheat include cat litter, wheat concrete, biodegradable spoons and forks, dog treats, hand cleaners, soap, shampoo and biodegradable plastic wrap.

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SPINACH

*Spinach originates from the Middle East, most likely Persia or modern-day Iran. It was brought to Spain via the Moors somewhere between 800 A.D. and 1200 A.D. Cultivation of spinach began in the United States around 1806.

*Today it is a versatile and commonly used vegetable in this country. On average, each American eats 3 pounds of spinach a year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture: 2 pounds of fresh spinach and 1 pound of processing spinach.

*Yuma County producers grew more than 6,500 acres of spinach valued at over $33.5 million in 2005. Spinach is the sixth leading vegetable crop grown in Yuma County.

*Spinach is a good source of vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, iron, calcium and

folate.

*Researchers have identified at least 13 different compounds in spinach that function as antioxidants and anti-cancer agents. Spinach has also been shown to help those suffering from osteoporosis, heart disease, colon cancer, arthritis and other diseases.

*Fresh spinach is a great way to start a healthful salad. Just add other colorful vegetables or fruits, a few nuts or seeds and your favorite dressing. Fresh spinach also makes a great addition to sandwiches.

*The creator of the comic strip character Popeye, E.C. Segar was a vegetarian. As a way of promoting the benefits of vegetables, he boosted his character’s strength with a known iron-rich food.

*Spinach is related closely to beets and Swiss chard.

*Spinach is highly perishable and will not maintain good quality for more than two weeks.

*Birds Eye was the first company to advertise “frozen spinach” in a 1949 edition of Life magazine. The advertisement depicted a pretty woman wearing pearls, reading a book and having a cup of coffee. She had time to do this because the Birds Eye spinach was cleaned, cut and ready for heating.

*There are three types of spinach available in U.S. supermarkets: savoy (curly leaf), flat (smooth leaf) and semi-savoy (slightly curly leaves). Baby spinach comes from the smallest leaves of flat-leaf spinach varieties.

*While spinach is a good source of iron, the extreme iron content is a myth that may have first been propagated by Dr. E. von Wolf in 1870. A misplaced decimal point in his publication led to an iron-content figure that was 10 times too high. In 1937, German chemists reinvestigated this "miracle vegetable" and corrected the mistake.

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BLACK-EYED PEAS

*Black-eyed peas are one of the oldest food sources, likely having originated in Africa some 5,000 to 6,000 years ago. A drought-tolerant and warm-weather crop, black-eyed peas are well-adapted to the drier regions of the world, where other food legumes do not perform well.

*In 2006, Yuma County producers grew more than 2,300 acres of black-eyed peas, an increase from 800 acres in 2000.

*Worldwide, black-eyed pea production has increased dramatically in the last 25 years. Today they are one of the most important food legume crops in the semi-arid tropics covering Asia, Africa, southern Europe and Central and South America.

*As legumes, black-eyed peas are extremely nourishing vegetables, both to people and to the soil. The plants are able to fix or take in nitrogen from the air, and bacteria living in the roots convert it to a usable plant nutrient. Because of this process, the plants improve soil quality by adding nutrients back into the soil.

*For humans, the seeds of black-eyed peas are a inexpenive source of quality protein, making them a useful meat substitute. The pods may also be boiled as a vegetable and even the fresh leaves can be eaten.

*Originally used as food for livestock, black-eyed peas became a staple of the slaves’ diet. Thus, during the Civil War, black-eyed peas (field peas) and corn were ignored by Sherman’s troops. Left behind in the fields, they became important food for the Confederate South. As a result, in the American South, eating black-eyed peas and greens (such as collards) on New Year’s Day is considered good luck: The peas symbolize coins and the greens symbolize paper money.

*Black-eyed pea pods are smooth, 6 to 10 inches long, cylindrical and generally somewhat curved. As the seeds approach the green-mature stage for use as a vegetable, pod color is most commonly green, yellow or purple.

*Cowpea is another name for black-eyed peas. Other names are China bean and black-eyed bean.

*They are a key ingredient in Hoppin’ John (peas, rice and pork) and part of African-American “soul food.”

*Originally called mogette (French for nun), the black eye in the center of the bean (where it attaches to the pod) reminded some of a nun’s head attire.

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CANTALOUPE

*Food historians have been befuddled when it comes to determining the exact origin of the melon. Some say it is Persia, others say Afghanistan while still other historians pinpoint Armenia. Cantaloupes were cultivated in Egypt and across to Iran and northwest India dating back to 2400 B.C.

*Cantaloupe reportedly gained its name from its cultivation in the papal gardens of Cantaloupo, a city near Tivoli, close to Rome. From there they were introduced to the New World on Columbus' second voyage in 1493, when he took melon seeds to Haiti.

*It wasn't until after the Civil War ended in 1865 that cantaloupe became a major crop in United States.

*In 2005, melon growers in Yuma County produced cantaloupes on more than 2,400 acres valued at $9.3 million. Arizona is the second-largest producer of the crop, with California being the first.

*What Americans call cantaloupes are actually muskmelons. True cantaloupes have smooth to rough skin with no netting and are not commercially grown in the United States. Europeans recognize a clear distinction between cantaloupes and muskmelons.

*The great taste of a juicy sweet cantaloupe comes with a very small caloric price: only 50 calories per 6-ounce slice.

*Cantaloupe is a great source of vitamins A and C, potassium and small amounts of many other minerals.

*Good-quality cantaloupe will have large webbing or netting on the skin, yellow/orange coloring and be slightly soft on the stem end (firm elsewhere). They will also have a good cantaloupe smell on the stem end, and the scar at the stem end should be a smooth and well-rounded cavity. You should hear the seeds rattle inside a juicy melon when it's shaken.

*Avoid cantaloupes with a rough stem end or with portions of the stem remaining - this means the melon was harvested too early and not at the peak of sweetness. Melons with green coloring, soft or sunken spots or dark and dirty spots that look moldy are all signs of poor quality.

*Whole, ripe cantaloupe should be stored in the refrigerator and used within a week of purchase. Cut fruit should be eaten in one or two days. It is recommended to wash cantaloupe before cutting it.

*Enjoy cantaloupe by the slice or add to fruit salads, fruit trays and smoothies. There also are a variety of recipes online for the fruit. Try a squeeze of lemon or lime juice to enhance the flavor of a cantaloupe.

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Source: Kurt Nolte is an agriculture agent with the Yuma County Cooperative Extension. He can be reached at knolte@cals.arizona.edu or 726-3904.