Triticale

About Triticale
Wikipedia Article About Triticale on Wikipedia

Triticale (X Triticosecale) is a hybrid of wheat (Triticum) and rye (Secale) first bred in laboratories during the late 19th century, but only recently developed into a viable crop. Depending on the variety, triticale can resemble either parent or have characteristics of both. Today, it is cultivated mostly for forage and animal feed but some triticale foods can be purchased at health food stores or in some breakfast cereals.

The word itself is a fusion of the Latin words triticum ("wheat") and secale ("rye"). When crossing wheat and rye, wheat is used as the female parent and rye as the male. Because the resulting hybrids are sterile, they have to be treated with the alkaloid colchicine to make them fertile.