Corn
From Encyclopediak
Corn, Indian Corn or Maize, Maze, a cereal belonging to the Grass Family and closely related to sorghum and sugar cane, both of which the plant resembles in its general appearance. In the Old World corn means any sort of grain, as oats, wheat, rice, but in the United States it always means Indian corn, or maize. Corn is an American plant and was unknown previous to the discovery of the New World. It was a staple of the Indians from Mexico to Canada, but, owing to their crude methods of agriculture, the grain was so inferior to that now grown it would scarcely be recognized. It was early introduced into Europe and later into India, but the United States is the it is grown. It is erect, jointed and slightly concave on one side. The joints, or nodes, are larger than the stalk, which they separate into sections. The joints strengthen the stalk and are nearer together towards the bottom than at the top. The stem is covered by a thin outer layer, which is very compact and difficult to penetrate. This covering protects the inner structure from rain and from the ravages of sucking insects. Just within this layer is the woody wall, which supports the stem and gives it strength. The center is filled with the pith, a light spongy substance in which plant food is stored for ripening the seed late in the season. Extending through the great corn-producing country, raising about three-fourths of the world's supply. The other countries worthy of mention, in order of their importance, are Austria-Hungary, Argentina, Mexico and Italy.
THE CORN PLANT. Corn is an annual plant with a herbaceous stem. The botanical name zea mays is derived from the Greek word zoo, meaning to live, and the Livonian word mayse, meaning bread, or the staff of life. The Stalk. The stem ranges in height from about 2 to 18 ft., according to the variety of corn and the locality in which entire length of the stem are threadlike lubes, which convey nourishment from the roots to various parts of the plant.
The Leaves. The leaves begin at the joints and for some distance form a sheath around the stem. They are arranged alternately on the stem and are long, narrow and pointed. According to the best authorities the average length of a leaf in the large varieties of corn is 36 inches, and the surface area, including both sides, is 228 square inches. Allowing 12 leaves to the stem, this would give 19 sq. ft. of leaf surface for each stalk. One of the chief functions of the leaf is the evaporation of water drawn up through the roots. The corn plant requires 500 Ib. of water for the formation of one pound of solid matter. On this basis for calculation, weigh a single dry stalk of corn with the ears and determine the quantity of water that passed through the leaves of that stalk during the season. The leaves have within themselves, however, the power to check the enormous evaporation when the roots do not receive a sufficient supply of water.
The Root. Like all grasses, corn has a fibrous root system. There is no large central root or taproot as in clover, but the roots vary in size, and in large plants they extend into the ground several feet. At first the extend laterally a few indies Ielow the surface for two or three feet, doping gradually downward, then descend deeper into the earth. All the main roots send off numerous brandies so that the root system is very extensive. The roots hold the plant in position and supply it with water and the plant food it receives from the soil. As the plant increases in size roots branch off from the lowest joint in the stem and extend to the soil in a diagonal direction. These are called secondary roots and are chiefly for the purpose of holding the stalk in an upright position and supporting it against the wind.
The Flower. Each plant bears two sorts of flowers the tassel, or staminate flowers, and the silk, or pistillate flowers. These are usually called male and female flowers by the farmer. The tassel contains the pollen, which when ripe is scattered by the wind. Since much of the pollen is wasted a large supply is necessary, and the estimates of agricultural experiment stations give an average of 30,250,000 pollen grains to a plant. The tassels usually appear about seven days before the silk. The female flowers, or silk, spring from a spike, commonly known as the cob. This springs from the stalk in the axil of the leaf. It is covered with leaves of special form, nown as husks, the whole structure constituting the ear. Each female flower starts from a small structure on the cob, which is the basis of a kernel of corn. The silk extends along the cob under the husks and grows out at the end of the ear, forming a beautiful tassel of greenish-brown, several indies in length. The outer end of each silk is split and contains a sticky fluid which holds the pollen that falls upon it. There is one silk for each kernel and an average of 800 kernels to the ear.
FERTILIZATION. The silks appear a few days before the pollen sacs are ready to discharge their contents. When a grain of pollen lodges on a silk, the moisture present and the heat of the sun cause it to germinate and send down through tlie hollow silk a tiny pollen tube to the ovule in the kernel, and the fertilizing matter from the pollen grain passes down this tube to the ovule and unites with an egg cell that has been formed there. This process constitutes the act of fertilization, and as soon as it is completed the kernel begins to grow. Development of the Ear. The kernels are arranged on the cob in rows, which in perfect ears extend in straight lines from the butt to the tip. The silks start first from the kernels at the butt and consequently these are the first kernels to be fertilized. The development of the ear is from the butt towards the tip, and the kernels at the butt ripen earlier than those at the tip. This is very noticeable in short seasons when the kernels on the last third or possibly the last half of the ear fail to ripen. The number of rows on the ear varies in different varieties of corn, but it is always an even number. A perfect ear should be filled with kernels from butt to tip.
VARIETIES. Through breeding and cultivation over 800 varieties of corn have been produced. All these varieties have been classified into seven groups, six of which are important. They are 1. Pod Corn. The varieties in this group have each kernel enclosed in a pod or husk, with the ear also enclosed with husks. This is the corn grown by the Indians and from which other varieties have been developed. For this reason it is sometimes called primitive corn. 2. Flint Corns. The varieties in this group are characterized by kernels with a hard, smooth and glossy outer coat, which is usually of a deep golden-yellow. The plants seldom exceed eight feet in height. The ears usually have eight rows, but in some varieties have 12. The flint corns mature in a short season and are raised farther north than the dent orn. The kernel is rich, sweet and highly nutritious. 3. Dent Corns. These varieties are so called because of a peculiar indentation at the summit, or outer end, of the kernel, which is formed by the shrinkage of the starchy matter in drying. The ears are much larger than those of the flint corn and the kernels are more angular in shape, but glossy and deeper. The dent corn is raised throughout the Corn Belt of the United States, and it is the corn of commerce. 4. Soft Corns. The varieties in this group have soft kernels, but they are seldom indented. This is the corn found buried with the ancient Aztecs and Incas and is sometimes called mummy corn. Soft corns are generally grown in the Southern regions. 5. Sivcet Corns. Sweet corns are soft but shrink in drying, making a shriveled kernel. They contain a larger percentage of sugar than any other varieties and are extensively grown for table use and canning. Sweet corn was procured from the Susquehanna Indians in 1779. 6. Pop Corns. The pop corns have small ears, kernels and germs, the chief characteristic being the strong, tough outer coat of the kernel, which in the best varieties completely covers it and makes popping possible. In popping, the kernel literally turns itself inside out, which can be done only when the covering of the kernel is strong enough to resist the steam pressure formed by the moisture within the kernel when heated and until a force sufficiently strong to accomplish this is developed. Hence other varieties of corn may parch, that is, crack open, but they cannot pop.
CULTIVATION. The production of a profitable corn crop depends upon the soil, the climate, the seed, the preparation of the ground and the cultivation of the growing crop. Corn can be successfully raised on a variety of soils, but it thrives best on a dark, rich loam. Since the yield of grain depends upon the size of the stalk more than in any other cereal, corn should not be planted in poor soil. Corn land should be well drained, so that the water table will be three or four feet below the surface otherwise the roots will extend laterally and not penetrate the deeper layers of soil, from which mud of the plant food is obtained. In its native state corn is a semitropical plant, but its range has been extended by cultivation from Mexico to the extreme northern part of the United States and into Canada. The northern limit of production has been advanced fully 100 m. since the Civil War. It requires warm summers, with plenty of sunshine, but it can endure neither extreme heat nor prolonged drout. It is easily damaged b frost, hence the limitations of the corn-producing regions are determined largely by the length of the season. This varies in different localities from 90 to 160 days, and in the best parts of the Corn Belt may extend to about 170 days. Corn requires a large amount of water and the plant is not successful in arid or semiarid regions. The most desirable regions an those where the greater part of the rain fall occurs during the growing month of July and August, as in the Corn Belt. At this time the plant is putting forth its leaves, ears and tassels and requires a large supply of food. Before planting, the ground should be plowed, disked and harrowed until the seed bed is thoroughly pulverized to a depth of several inches. Planting is done by a machine, hauled by horses See CORN PLANTER. For dent corn the hills are usually three and one-half feet apart each way. But while this is the standard measure, it is varied to conform to the variety of corn and nature of the soil. Large rank-growing varieties need to have rows farther apart, and in the 708 Southeast, where the climate causes a rank growth, the rows are sometimes six feet apart. The depth for planting is usually from one to two inches and the standard number of stalks to the hill is three, but on very strong fertile soils it may be four or even five. The seed should be selected with the greatest care. In the Corn Belt much attention is given to growing", selecting and testing seed corn, and Illinois has a seed Growers association. Before planting, the seed should be tested so that the farmer may know how many kernels in every hundred he can probably depend upon to germinate. So far as possible seed should be raised upon the farm on which it is to be planted or in the immediate vicinity, because when brought from any distance it will not usually produce so large a crop, since corn is very sensitive to change of climatic conditions. Corn should be cultivated at frequent intervals, while growing. The cultivation usually continues until the plants become so large that they are liable to be broken down by the team. Then the crop is laid by to ripen.
HARVESTING. Harvesting should be delayed until late in the season, since the kernel derives nourishment from the cob after the leaves and husks turn brown. Notwithstanding all the corn-harvesting machinery that lias been invented, the greater part of the corn crop is still harvested and husked by handa task which in the great corn states often extends far into the winter, and taxes the entire population. In a field yielding 50 bushels to the acre, one man with a team and wagon will gather and husk 70 bushels a day. The corn harvester and shredder is in successful use on many large farms. This machine cuts the stalks, picks and husks the ears and shreds the stalks for fodder. It requires from four to six horses to operate it and two teams with wagons to haul the corn to the cribs. It will harvest from eight to ten acres a day. Corn should be stored where it is exposed to a free circulation of air and is protected from moisture. The ideal storehouse is a long, narrow crib, with the floor raised about two feet from the ground and the sides made of slats, placed about two inches apart. The roof should project over the sides far enough to keep the rain from beating in on the corn.
MARKETING. Corn can be shelled and marketed as soon as it is thoroughly dry. Shelling is by machines, operated by gasoline or steam engines. The largest of these machines will shell or thresh from 2500 to 4000 bushels a day. The shelled corn is hauled to the elevators, where it is stored until needed for use. Most of the farmers in the Corn Belt are in such condition financially that they can hold their crop until it can be marketed to the best advantage.
THE CORN CROP. In 1921 there were 103,850,000 acres planted to corn in the United States and the total crop amounted to 3,081,251,000 bushels. This was an average of 29.2 bushels to every man, woman and child in the country. This crop would fill a crib eight feet wide and eight feet deep extending around the world. The United States produces about three-fourths of the world's crop, and the leading states in the order of their importance are Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana, Nebraska, Ohio and Kansas.
DISEASES AND PESTS. The corn plant is subject to damage or destruction from insect pests. Diseases. Corn blight is a disease which attacks the young plant in the roots and the full-grown plant in the stalks. The attack upon the roots dwarfs the growth and destroys the crop. The attack upon the stalks lessens the yield and renders the stalks worthless as fodder. Destroying the affected plants is the only sure way of preventing the disease. Corn wilt is a disease which causes the plants to wilt and dry up. When young plants are attacked, they die within a few days, but older plants will live for some time. The disease is caused by bacteria and no remedy has been found. Another damaging disease is leaf blight. This is caused by a minute fungus, which cannot be detected without the use of a magnifying glass. Under the glass it appears as round, brownish dots. This disease is seldom found and is not considered of economic importance. The two diseases most commonly recognized are smut and rust. See RUST SMUT.
INSECTS. The corn crop is also subject to devastation from numerous insects, the most important of which are described under their respective titles. See CLICK BEETLE, CUTWORM, WEBWORM, JUNE BUG, APHID, CRUNCH BUG, ARMY WORM, FUNGICIDE INSECTICIDE.
CORN PRODUCTS EXTENT AND VALUE. Corn yields a greater number of products and is more generally useful than any other cereal, and, with the exception of rice, constitutes the food of a larger number of people than any other plant. In various forms it serves the farmers families as a wholesome and nutritious food the green fodder corn supplements the pasturage in the summer and in the form of ensilage the entire plant is used for fodder during the winter. Indirectly it supplies the milk of the dairy and the beef and pork of the packing houses. It is the greatest source of income and wealth throughout the great agricultural region known as the Corn Belt. Practically all the plant is useful, and the great variety of products obtained from it may be classified as products obtained from the kernel, products obtained from the cob and products derived from the stalk.
PRODUCTS FROM THE KERNEL. The products obtained from the kernel are:
Corn Meal. Corn meal is the most common form in which corn prepared for food is placed on the market. It is usually ground in three degrees of fineness, known as coarse, medium and fine meal. The old stone mills ground the entire kernel, and the meal contained the hull, the starch and the germ, but in modern mills the germ and the hull are removed before grinding. The excess of oil in the germ causes the meal to become rancid when stored fcr any length of time in warm weather. Hence its removal is necessary. White corn is generally preferred for grinding, because white meal sells better than the yellow. The finest grade of meal is sometimes used to adulterate wheat flour.
Hominy. The name hominy is applied to various preparations. In the Central and Western states it means the whole kernel, from which the hull has been removed. This is done by soaking the corn in a weak solution of some alkali, which loosens the hull so that it can be easily rubbed off. The corn is then thoroughly washed to remove the alkali and cooked. Most of it is canned before being placed on the market. In the New England States this preparation is generally known as hulled corn.
Samp, or cerealine, consists of the cracked corn which, when cooked, forms a porridge or pudding.
Corn Flour. Corn flour is prepared by washing away the proteid and fat and grinding what remains. It is really a form of starch, but is not considered as an economical article of food, because it has been deprived of its most nutritive properties.
Corn Flakes. Corn flakes are made from corn grits, which are first salted and sweetened, then steam cooked, dried and rolled into thin, flat flakes. The flakes are toasted in ovens and placed in boxes for the trade. They are of some nutritive value and constitute a popula breakfast food. Bran. The hulls obtained in the man ufacture of meal are ground and form bran, which is of value to mix with more highly concentrated stock foods.
Gluten Meal. Gluten meal is one oi the more recent corn products placed upon the market. It is procured from the gluten, which is separated in the manufacture of starch and other products. When freed from the starch and dried, it is placed on the market as a food. Mixed with bran it is sold as gluten food.
Corn Oil. Corn oil is obtained from the germs. They are dried, then ground to a fine flour. The flour is steamed, the oil extracted by pressure. The oil is used for lubricating, for the manufacture of paints and in making rubber. A refined quality is used for table purposes as a substitute for olive oil. The germs, after the oil is extracted, are sold in thin slabs as corn-oil cake, or, when ground, as germ-oil meal which is used for feeding stock.
Rubber. Strange as it may seem, corn is becoming an important source of rubber, which is made from corn oil by a process known as vulcanizing. The rubber has a coarse texture and mixes readily with rubber made from the rubber plant. It is not so elastic as other rubber, lint is useful for buffers, buggy tires and rubber soles, nearly all of which are made from corn rubber. Starch. Cornstarch is one of the most ommon and extensive of corn products and many million bushels of corn are used yearly in its manufacture. See STARCH.
Dextrine. Dextrine is made by heating the starch to 280 F. with weak nitric acid. It is used in the manufacture of mucilage and certain kinds of paste and by the manufacturers of glue. The adhesive mixture on postage and revenue stamps consists largely of dextrine.
Glucose. By heating a mixture of cornstarch and dilute hydrochloric or sulphuric acid in a closed steam converter and under a pressure of 30 to 40 Ib. to the square inch, glucose is produced. When the glucose is drawn from the converter the excess of acid is removed by chalk, marble dust or soda. Glucose sirup is about half as sweet as corn or beet sirup, but it is extensively used in canning fruits, making preserves and in the manufacture of confectionery and jelly.
Corn Syrup. The syrup now common on the market is prepared by mixing one part cane syrup with nine parts glucose.
ALCOHOL. Alcohol is made by fermentation and distillation. A bushel of corn will produce about 2.7 gallons of alcohol 95 per cent pure. Large quantities of corn are consumed in this way. See ALCOHOL.
PRODUCTS FROM THE COB. Corncobs are not wholly worthless, as was formerly supposed.
Fuel. In the Corn Belt where coal must be hauled some distance cobs are quite generally used for summer fuel. Three tons of cobs are equal to about one ton of dry hard wood.
Cob Pipes. There is a largre factory in St. Louis devoted to the manufacture of tobacco pipes from cobs, and in this vicinity a large variety of corn is raised with a view to supplying this factory with cobs.
Corn Down. Corn down is made in dressing the cobs and hollowing them in the manufacture of pipes. It is used in upholstering and in making mattresses.
PRODUCTS FROM THE PLANT. Paper, A good quality of paper is made from the pith and at much less cost than paper from wood pulp. This industry has recently started, but it has every prospect of rapid development.
Packing. The pith of the corn stalk is the most valuable material for packing under the armor plate of battleships. If the armor is penetrated, the pith swells quickly when wet and stops the leak. Many acres of stalks are necessary to supply packing for a single battleship.
Guncotton and smokeless powder are also made from the pith. See GUNCOTTON SMOKELESS POWDER.
New Corn Product. After the pith has been removed, the balance of the stalk and the leaves are ground into a sort of meal that forms an excellent stock food, which finds a ready market in localities remote from the Corn Belt. The Husks. The husks are used in packing fruits, in making door mats and in filling mattresses.
