Ash Wheat

Named as much for its discovery as its coloring, Ash Wheat was found when farmers who fled The Blazing Harvest eventually began trickling back to the Verdant Grasmark to rebuild their lives.
As expected, most traces of their former lives - homes, barns, wells - were burnt out husks. Not as expected, however, where their fields. Through the ashes of crops dusting the ground sprouted the strangely desaturated blades of something new.

Uses, Byproducts & Exploitation

Ash Wheat flour is now the primary economic crop of the Verdant Grasmark region. It is used in all manner of baked goods and is known for its ability to absorb and enhance smokey flavors.

Geographic Distribution

Ash Wheat is readily grown and harvested throughout the Verdant Grasmark. Attempts to grow it outside of these confines have so far been unsuccessful. It is said that Ash Wheat can only grow in soil fertilized by The Blazing Harvest.

Biological Cycle

Ash Wheat follows the typical life-cycle of other Alscyoran wheats.

• Seeding: Covers the period when the seed first extends its roots to the sprouting of bladed, greenish-grey leaves from the ground.
• Tillering: Begins when deep green sheaths, called "tillers," emerge from the root. These sheaths will give rise to the wheat's stalks.
• Jointing: This stage sees each stalk begin to form hard, fibrous nodes that allow the wheat to telescope upwards.
• Heading/Flowering: Comprises the formation and emergence of the light grey awns at the tip of each stalk. This stage also marks when the wheat's period of pollination/fertilization.
• Ripening: The wheat begins consolidating nutrients from the stalks and leaves and storing it in kernels in the wheat head. During this process, all greenish hues disappear from the plant, giving the stalks their namesake, ashen appearance. When all color has disappeared, the plant is ready for harvest.

Geographic Distribution

• Verdant Grasmark