71/227/5

A sample of barley seed of the variety 'Hansen Hexastichum Nigrum B'. The sample is part of a collection of over 500 samples of early barley breeds (71/227/1–71/227/510) from Dr E. S. Beaven of the Guinness Barley Research Station at Warminster, Wiltshire.

Seed sample: barley seed

MERL 'Handwritten accession' form (Institute of Agricultural History) – 'Standard museum name: BARLEY SAMPLES // Accession number: 71/227 // Recorder: Betts, J. // Date: 16.1.83 // Description: A collection of some 500 samples of early barley breeds from c. 1920’s. // Associated information: The samples are catalogued on cards which are in the Museum Workroom. [The location of these cards is not known as of 02.01.2014]’, MERL Miscellaneous note, Greta Bertram, 2 January 2014 – Dr E. S. Beaven (1857–1941) was one of the leading breeders of barley in the first half of the twentieth century. He was a maltster in Warminster, Wiltshire, and he began to make experimental trials of barley. One outcome of his experiments was a new variety, Plumage-Archer, which was one of the principal types of malting barleys until new hybrids, such as Proctor, were introduced after the Second World War. Much of his work was published posthumously in the book Barley (1947). The MERL Archives (reference TR GUI) contain records relating to Dr Beaven’s work on the development of new barley varieties, and the establishment of the British Seed Corn Association Ltd. for the distribution of these varieties; and to subsequent developmental work at the Guinness Barley Research Station at Warminster.

Warminster

1920-01-01 - 1929-12-31

1920s