Corn

Plant Characteristics

Cultivation

Scientific Names
Poaceae >	Teosinte >	mays >

Upright, strong, robust stalks produce smooth strap-like leaves. Pointed-tipped leaves are up to 36 in (90 cm) long. Feathery male flowers come in terminal panicles, while female flowers come in heads up to 8 in (20 cm) long, originating from leaf axils, and packed with yellow, white, or black shiny grains, up to 10 mm across, all enclosed within the leaves. These are known as "ears" of corn.

More information about this species can be found on the genus page.

Cultivation

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Propagation

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Pests and diseases

Insect pests

Corn earworm (Helicoverpa zea)
Fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda)
Common armyworm (Pseudaletia unipuncta)
Stalk borer (Papaipema nebris)
Corn leaf aphid (Rhopalosiphum maidis)
European corn borer (Ostrinia nubilalis) (ECB)
Corn silkfly (Euxesta stigmatis)
Lesser cornstalk borer (Elasmopalpus lignosellus)
Corn delphacid (Peregrinus maidis)
Western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte)

The susceptibility of maize to the European corn borer, and the resulting large crop losses, led to the development of transgenic expressing the Bacillus thuringiensis toxin. "Bt corn" is widely grown in the United States and has been approved for release in Europe.

Diseases

List of maize diseases

Corn smut or common smut (Ustilago maydis): a fungal disease, known in Mexico as huitlacoche, which is prized by some as a gourmet delicacy in itself.
Maize Dwarf Mosaic Virus
Stewart's Wilt (Pantoea stewartii)
Common Rust (Puccinia sorghi)
Goss's Wilt (Clavibacter michiganese)
Grey Leaf Spot
Mal de Río Cuarto Virus (MRCV)
Stalk and Kernal Rot

Species

Many forms of maize are used for food, sometimes classified as various subspecies:

Flour corn — Zea mays var. amylacea
Popcorn — Zea mays var. everta
Dent corn — Zea mays var. indentata
Flint corn — Zea mays var. indurata
Sweet corn — Zea mays var. saccharata and Zea mays var. rugosa
Waxy corn — Zea mays var. ceratina
Amylomaize — Zea mays
Pod corn — Zea mays var. tunicata
Striped maize — Zea mays var. japonica

Gallery

Corn plants showing ears
Young stalks
Two teosintes said to be the parents of maize
Guila Naquitz Cave, site of the oldest known remains of maize
Field of maize in Liechtenstein
A corn heap at the harvest site, India
Multicolored varieties of maize
Exotic varieties of maize are collected to add genetic diversity when selectively breeding new domestic strains.
Corn shocks, or bundles, are a traditional harvest practice.
Roasted corn on Charcol, a common sight in Bangalore, India
Corn male flower, a.k.a. corn tassel
Corn female flower, a.k.a. corn silk