How to Thresh Wheat

Wheat seeds can be threshed by hand using a blunt object.

Wheat plants produce seeds, sometimes called "wheat berries" that are contained in the small oval-shaped heads of the plants. The edible seeds are enclosed within these heads, and they must be separated from the enclosures before use. The act of separating the seeds from the heads is called "threshing." Threshing is simply the act of crushing the head shells so the seeds may fall from them. Wheat may be threshed through the use of a blunt object and a flat surface.

Things You'll Need

• Tree stump or other flat surface
• Large rubber or wooden mallet
• 5-gallon plastic bucket or other container

Instructions

1. Gather a bundle of wheat stalks together so they may be comfortably held in the fist of one hand. Between 50 and 100 stalks can be handled with ease for most individuals. Hold the bundle in the middle, halfway between the stalk ends and the heads of the stalks.

2. Place the heads of the stalks on top of a hard, flat surface and allow the heads to fan out slightly, covering the entire flat surface.

3. Hit the heads of the wheat stalks with the flat surface of a large rubber or wooden mallet. Use just enough force that the mallet breaks open the heads, releasing the seeds, but not enough force that the seeds are excessively crushed or flattened. Continue tapping the heads until all of the seeds have been released from the heads.

4. Discard the stalks once the seeds have been threshed from the heads, then brush the wheat seeds into the bucket for storage.

Tips & Warnings

• You may optionally "winnow" the wheat seeds at the time of threshing by setting a large fan near the bucket you are brushing the seeds into. The fan will blow away the small dry particles that remain (called "chaff") and will prevent the need to do so later before grinding the seeds into flour.

• An alternative to beating the heads with a blunt object is to step on the grain heads with clean shoes on a flat, hard surface, to separate the grains from the heads. This is more suitable for larger batches of wheat.

References

• Bread Info: Harvest Back Yard Wheat
• Preppers: Growing and Harvesting Wheat by Hand (PDF)

Resources

• Threshing and Winnowing Wheat (Video Resource)