The usual corn is light yellow or orange in color. The active dissemination of information and images of unusual colored cobs has led to a wave of questions and doubts about the edibility of this subspecies of culture. Despite the outlandish appearance of the product, colored corn is widespread.
Colored corn
Colored corn tolerates frost well
Colored corn has a sweet taste
The story of the appearance of colored corn
It is believed that the colored form of corn appeared in America during the time of Columbus. Other sources point to the use of colored maize by the ancient Mayans. There are many mentions of Indians who preferred colored corn, ate it, and fed it to domestic animals.
Colored varieties of corn appeared as follows: agronomists selected ears with a defective gene - colored grains that appeared on ordinary plants - for subsequent planting. So, from year to year, for many centuries, the color factor of culture manifested itself more and more.
Modern agronomists extol the many years of labor of Oklahoma farmer Karl Burns, who revived the cultivation of colorful corn in large quantities. For many years, he collected and crossed hybrid maize varieties through painstaking open pollination. Since 2005, Burns has been actively growing corn, taking off several crops a year, on the land of his friend and partner Jose Lucero. Since 2008, the Burns and Jose Commonwealth has given preference to only multi-colored corn varieties.
It was from Karl that the name Glass Gem was attached to colored corn (which translates as “glass pearl"). In addition to this expression, Americans call colored cobs siliceous, Indian, or Zea Mays indurate (in Latin). Often this corn is compared to a scattering of pearlescent multi-colored sea stones.
Nowadays, the cultivation of multi-colored corn is happening everywhere. New varieties of siliceous culture are being developed that are adapted to the Russian climate.
Culture Description
Colored corn is generally understood to be a siliceous subspecies, although it is not the only one capable of producing a hue other than yellow. However, most often breeders chose this particular variety in order to breed multi-colored cobs.
Colored corn differs from its counterparts of other subspecies in the rounded shape of the grains, which have a characteristic depression at the very top. The grains are smooth, glossy with a solid endosperm on the entire surface. Their internal content is loose and mealy.
Estimated chemical composition of colored corn grains:
- 80% starch;
- 5% fat;
- 15% protein.
The color of the grains is different:
- yellow;
- white;
- brown;
- the black;
- Orange;
- pink;
- Violet.
The culture is famous for its early ripening and decent yield. In addition to the multi-colored cobs, the siliceous subspecies is chosen due to its indisputable advantages:
- high tolerance to frost, including sudden temperature changes;
- resistance to shattering, due to which the grains remain on the cobs even after frost;
- low susceptibility to fungal diseases and rot.
Colored maize alone produced crops in New England in the infamous 1816, called the "Year Without Summer."
Colored Indian corn is most often grown commercially for cereals, flour grinding, flaking, popcorn production and many other processing methods. Rainbow overflows of cobs of Indian corn are actively used in decorative art. Despite the preconceived belief that the product is unsuitable for food, the wax-milk ripeness of silicon varieties is in no way inferior in sweetness and taste to the sugar subspecies of the culture.
Varieties of colored corn
To grow crops, domestic gardeners choose varieties adapted to Russian climatic conditions. The most common and proven rainbow cobs come from the following varieties on the site:
Where to buy seeds?
Corn grown by Carl Burns can be bought on the Native Seeds website. She owns the right to sell the copyright product. Proceeds from the sale of Glass Gem are used for agricultural research and the development of new unique crops.
On the website of the corporation, the cost of one package of seeds varies from 5 to 10 dollars. The international Internet sites AliExpress and eBay also offer the purchase of multi-colored corn at a price of 1 to 18 dollars per bag.
On the Russian shelves there are a large number of adapted varieties of colored corn at various prices. Perhaps these cobs will not differ in pearlescent multicolored scattering, like Glass Gem, but they will definitely delight the gardener with the brightness of shades with proper care.
Features of growing colored corn
The principle of growing colored maize is practically no different from conventional sugar varieties (unless otherwise indicated on the seed package). The soil should be fertile and have neutral or slightly increased acidity. The place for planting colored corn is chosen to be illuminated and calm.
Disembarkation is possible in two ways:
- Planting seeds in open ground. In late April-early May, when the land on the site warms up to 10 degrees, they begin to prepare the grains. They are laid out in the sun to warm up for several days, and then placed in a container with warm water for a day. After that, the seeds are placed in the prepared beds to a depth of 5-6 cm in increments of about 30-40 cm.
- Seedling method. To get an early harvest in late March-early April, grains are sown at home. When the 4th leaf appears, the seedlings are thinned out. Sprouts are planted on the site when persistent spring heat is established at a distance of 40-50 cm from each other.
At the beginning of growth, they adhere to moderate watering, then increase it as needed. So that the stalks do not die, the corn is periodically spud.
Depending on the way it is used for food, the crop is harvested as it ripens. Milk and milky-wax ears are used for sweet consumption, and more mature corn is used for further processing.
Growing colored corn is an opportunity not only to harvest a tasty and healthy crop, but also to enjoy the abundance of bright colors during the ripening of the crop. A competent choice of seed material from a trusted seller and proper care are the key to a rich harvest of colorful maize.