Reference: Wheat
Hastings
The wheat of Palestine is mostly of the bearded varieties; it is not only eaten as bread, but also boiled, unground, to make the peasant's dish burghul, which is in turn pounded with meat in a mortar (cf. Pr 27:22) to make the festive delicacy kibbeh. Wheat is grown all over the valleys and plains of W. Palestine, though to a less extent than barley, but it is cultivated in the largest quantities in the Nuqra or plain of the Hauran, one of the finest grain-growing countries in the world. The wheat harvest occurs from April to June; its time was looked upon as one of the divisions of the year (Ex 34:22; Jg 15:1; 1Sa 12:17). The expressions 'fat of wheat' (Ps 81:16 mg., 147:14 mg.) and 'the fat of kidneys of wheat' (De 32:14) refer to the finest flour of wheat.
E. W. G. Masterman.