Durum wheat
Out of an economic perspective, durum wheat (Triticum durum) is the second most important type of wheat after soft wheat. This wheat is almost exclusively cultivated as summer crop.
Durum wheat likes warmth and requires less than 500 mm of rainfall. Due to these climatical reasons, France, Spain and Greece are the most important countries producing durum wheat in Europe.
The quality of durum wheat is determined by the falling number and the content of gluten or protein as well as by the glassiness. In hot and dry ripening, the starch granules solidly cement with the protein. The glassiness of the resulting durum wheat grain is expressed by its amber yellow colour and its hardness.