Some information on wheat and ancient grain production and use:

Production of alternative (organic, specialty market) wheat and related grains in California

Evaluating Spring Wheat Variety Performance in Organic Environments.  Report to California Wheat Commission by Mendocino Grain Project researchers.  Includes general impressions of 48 wheat varieties (and other grains) plus a replicated study of eight of them.

The Whole Grain Connection.  Source of seed tested for suitability in California production systems plus tons of information on using whole grains.

Small-Scale Grain Raising.  Okay, this one isn’t specific to California, but good info for the very small scale producer.  Plus, it’s by Gene Logsdon, so it’s worth reading.

Resources for baking whole grain sourdough bread

Shaping high-hydration sourdough loaves: good videos here and here (with a written description here).

Sourdoughs International.  Information plus sourdough cultures.  Their South African culture is supposed to be particularly good for whole wheat bread.

Some books: The Bread Builders, In Search of the Perfect Loaf, Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain Breads, Bread, From the Wood-Fired Oven

Details on the science of breadmaking can be found here

eOrganic webinars

(I’ll add tidbits from each of these webinars when I get a chance) Baking evaluation, sensory analysis, and nutritional characteristics of modern, heritage, and ancient wheat varieties Management for high-quality organic wheat and ancient grain production in the Northeast Heritage and Ancient Wheat: Varietal Performance and Management (presentation on research done in NY and PA)

Notes on this webinar: – For wheat, seeding rate (60-150 lbs/acre) did not affect lodging or final yield; nor did fertility (N application) rate in a field with prior leguminous crop. However, both speakers seemed to think that higher seeding rate and N would in general lead to more lodging (in all the grains, not just wheat). – Khorasan threshes free, unlike spelt, emmer, and einkhorn, which have hulls. Different varieties of these three latter species have different dehulling efficiencies (they used a lab-scale impact dehuller in these experiments). Spelt is generally easier to dehull than emmer or einkhorn. – the older grains tend to be more rust-resistant than heritage wheats are.

The “Ancient” Grains Emmer, Einkhorn, and Spelt: What We Know and What We Need to Find Out