Kansas Kaleidoscope - May 1999
(Volume 2, Number 7)
Real People. Real Stories.
A fun magazine for kids!
Amber Waves of Grain
Katherine Lee Bates must have had Kansas and its fields of golden wheat in mind when she wrote the words to "America the Beautiful" in 1893.
Corn vs. Wheat
Wheat was not always the main Kansas crop. Corn was grown by the Native Americans who lived here.
Knowing When to Harvest. . .It's An Art
Before combines arrived in Kansas in 1917, wheat was cut slightly green and allowed to ripen in a shock or stack.
One Grain at a Time
According to legend, 24 Mennonite families from the Russian Crimea introduced hard Turkey Red winter wheat to the plains of Kansas in the 1870s.
What is Wheat?
Wheat is the world's most important grain crop.
Planting and Harvesting Winter Wheat
Hard Red Winter Wheat - the kind grown in Kansas - is planted in the fall.
Kansas has always been proud of its role as a top wheat producer. And, you don't have to look hard to see evidence of this pride. The mascot for one of our state universities even gets into the act!
Did you Know?
. . .that grain storage bins are called elevators because they have lifts that are like office elevators except they move grain instead of people.
How S'Wheat It is
Dave and Shirley Voran, Kansas wheat farmers, operate The Kansas Wheat House, a Cimarron-based business that manufactures snack foods made from wheat.
An Easy Wheat Recipe
It's easy to forget how much we have come to depend on wheat. You'll want to try the Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.
Use the clues to find the right words for the wheat crossword puzzle.