Rivet wheat (Triticum turgidum)

Rivet wheat – also named Poulard, Cone or English wheat – is a free-threshing tetraploid winter cereal, which was differentiated throughout the Neolithic era from other descendants of domesticated emmer (Triticum dicoccum) like Durum, Polish, Khorasan and Persian wheat. Archaeological findings suggest that Rivet wheat has spread from Fertile Crescent and arrived in Europe by the Mediterranean route. Across its evolutionary process in cold and mountainous environments, Rivet wheat acquired a good tolerance to frost, wind and humidity. It has the capacity to grow in poor soils, shows a strong weed competitiveness and a good resistance to diseases. Consistently with the hardness of the kernel, it has been traditionally used for pasta and biscuit production (Chable et al. 2018).