Farming friends: Corn question

[Pax]

Here in Illinois it's "seed". In case you want to write about soybeans at some point, you say "beans".

[channlluv]

Brilliant. I like "seed corn." Do humans eat that kind of corn, too, or is it ranked thing where animals eat a certain grade, but humans eat a higher grade, and this grade is used for making gasoline, and that grade is used to make corn syrup for cooking? And then there's the whole genetically-modified bit, but that has nothing to do with the book I'm working on right now. This one is strictly for very young readers and it follows a season on a farm. The farmer plants the seed corn. The seed corn grows tall. Easy words, simple sentence structure.

I like the delineation between seeds being what you plant and kernels being what you eat. And it's interesting that beans are always just beans, even when they're seeds. Hmmm.

Lots to fertilize..ahem...my book ideas here.

Thank you, ladies!

Roxy

[Marquise]

Brilliant. I like "seed corn." Do humans eat that kind of corn, too, or is it ranked thing where animals eat a certain grade, but humans eat a higher grade, and this grade is used for making gasoline, and that grade is used to make corn syrup for cooking?

Seed corn grows up to be field corn, which is fed to cows. Sweet corn is what humans eat. My father sometimes ate field corn harvested very young (and hence still tender) when sweet corn season started. He'd plant a couple of rows of sweet corn at the edge of the corn field closest to our house for easy picking.

No idea about corn for other uses. But corn fields are fascinating and scary for kids. Fun to run and disappear among the tall stalks but easy to feel lost and lots of sharp edges.

[WindingRoad]

As an Indiana native, I've always heard seed corn if it's for feed. Its seeds if its for sweet corn, pop corn, sorgum or decorative corn.

[channlluv]

I obviously need to get out in the country more often. I am visualizing a whole new book here, in addition to the one I'm working on. All the Cool Things About Corn. Maybe it could be a series: All the Cool Things About ___, and focus on the many uses of common things.

I really do love being part of this community. Thank you, friends, for sharing your corn stories.

Roxy

[tulip]

Corn is fertilized by the wind. If you plant two varieties close together, you'll likely end up with funky corn. This can be a problem if you plant sweet corn near field corn--you probably won't end up with too much edible sweet corn.

[bmccasland]

Tulip is right about cross-pollination - but I don't know how much seed is saved by farmers to replant like they used to. The way to beat the issue is that seed is saved from the center of a "pure" stand. So Marquise's father would get his sweet corn from a different field, or just buy the seeds for a few rows next to the house. I'm sure the cows and pigs appreciated a bit of sweetness in their corn.

Back when I was a kid living in France, my Mom had a housekeeper who was appalled that Mom was giving us corn-on-the-cob, as the only corn Madame knew was field corn. Mom tried to explain that no, it was sweet corn, not pig food. Mom grew up on a farm and knew the difference. Madame wasn't convinced and brought us a bunch of garden vegies the next week because if we were eating pig food, maybe we weren't doing as well financially as she thought - she got her wages, but the children eating pig food, perish the thought!