Oats and barley have much in common. they are both small grains or cereals and constitute important grain crops exceeded only by wheat, rye and corn in acreage and value. what the origin of common oats is remains in doubt but its cultivation is not so old as wheat. the species of oats, which include all the cultivated varieties, appears to have arisen in the eastern temperate zone of europe or western asia. as for barley, it has been known for thousands of years and must have been cultivated before any recorded history. in the barley ear spikelets resemble those of wheat while the spikelets of oats differ in that they have stalks forming a panicle usually 9 to 12 inches long. there exist many different kinds of oats and barley and as with the other small grains, there are many differences as to characteristics between varieties raised. both oats and barley are most commonly seeded in the spring and grown as annuals; yet each has varieties that are winter annuals to be sown in the fall. no winter-oat varieties have been developed thus far are sufficiently hardy for dependable production where winters are severe. they are not grown as far north nor at such elevations as barley, the hardiest winter barleys resisting winter killing better than any of the present varieties of winter oats. of the spring sown oats some are very early. these are favored by the warm climate of the south, for they complete the growth before the hottest, driest part of the season. both oats and barley are grown by essentially identical seeding, cultural, and harvest methods. they fit conveniently into same sort of crop rotations, have about the same effect on the land on the succeeding crops, and have approximately the same seasonal labor requirements.
