maize
Sign in to saveMaize (; Zea mays), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. The leafy stalk of the plant gives rise to male inflorescences or tassels which produce pollen, and female inflorescences called ears. The ears yield grain, known as kernels or seeds. In modern commercial varieties, these are usually yellow or white; other varieties can be of many colors. Maize was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native Americans planted it alongside beans and squashes in the Three Sisters polycultur
AI overview
Maize, also called corn in North America, is a tall grass plant that produces grain kernels used as cereal, with kernels that are typically yellow or white in modern varieties. Domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico roughly 9,000 years ago, maize became an important crop planted alongside beans and squashes in traditional agriculture.
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Key facts
- Agricultural production.year
- 2020
- Agricultural production.plant
- maize
- Agricultural production.amount1
- 360.3
- Agricultural production.amount2
- 260.7
- Agricultural production.amount3
- 104.0
- Agricultural production.amount4
- 58.4
- Agricultural production.amount5
- 30.3
- Agricultural production.amount6
- 30.2
- Agricultural production.amount7
- 27.4
- Agricultural production.amount8
- 22.5
- Agricultural production.amount9
- 15.3
- Agricultural production.amount10
- 13.9
Article
28 sectionsContents
- Description
- Genetics
- Taxonomy
- External phylogeny
- Maize and teosinte
- Spreading to the north
- Names
- Cultivation
- Pre-Columbian development
- Columbian exchange
- Conventional breeding
- Genetic engineering
- Growing
- Harvesting
- Grain storage
- Production
- Pests
- Uses
- Culinary
- Nutritional value
- Animal feed
- Chemicals
- Biofuel
- In human culture
- See also
- References
- Further reading
- External links
Maize (; Zea mays), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. The leafy stalk of the plant gives rise to male inflorescences or tassels which produce pollen, and female inflorescences called ears. The ears yield grain, known as kernels or seeds. In modern commercial varieties, these are usually yellow or white; other varieties can be of many colors. Maize was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native Americans planted it alongside beans and squashes in the Three Sisters polyculture. That is, those three vegetables were the main staple crops of the time.
Maize relies on humans for its propagation. Since the Columbian exchange, it has become a staple food in many parts of the world, with the total production of maize surpassing that of wheat and rice. Much maize is used for animal feed, whether as grain (fodder) or as the whole plant, which can either be baled as forage or made into the more palatable silage. Sugar-rich varieties called sweet corn are grown for human consumption, while field corn varieties are used for animal feed, for uses such as cornmeal or masa, corn starch, corn syrup, pressing into corn oil, alcoholic beverages like bourbon whiskey, and as chemical feedstocks including ethanol and other biofuels.