The most produced grain on Earth, domesticated in southern Mexico from teosinte, a wild grass so unlike modern corn that the descent was disputed until genetics settled it. Maize fed the civilizations of the Americas, crossed the ocean in the Columbian Exchange, and now feeds livestock, people and industry on every continent. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
Scientific Name Domestication RegionBalsas River valley, southern Mexico 1 Domesticated When (Circa)circa 7000 BC (from teosinte) 1 Era
Era (category) FAQs
Is corn the same thing as maize?
Yes, they are the same crop; corn is the common name used mainly in the United States.
Yes. Maize (Zea mays) and corn name the same cereal crop; most countries primarily use maize, while corn is the everyday name in the United States and a handful of other English-speaking countries. This atlas records both as the same entity, with corn carried as an alternate common name rather than a separate crop.
Connections
Associated With
Source Columbian Exchange (Wikipedia)
a corn crib is a ventilated structure built specifically to store harvested maize ears
The corn earworm is one of the most damaging insect pests of maize ears in the Americas.
a corn sheller removes maize kernels from the cob
Corn smut (Ustilago maydis) is a widespread fungal disease of maize, forming galls on the ear and stalk.
This milestone records the domestication event of the maize crop it is directly named for.
The European corn borer is one of the most economically significant insect pests of maize in North America and Europe.
The fall armyworm, since its rapid global spread from the Americas, is now one of the most damaging pests of maize worldwide.
Grey leaf spot is named for and is one of the most yield-limiting foliar diseases of maize.
Demonstrated in maize by Shull and East; Jones's double-cross of 1914 to 1917 made hybrid corn practical
Source Heterosis (Wikipedia)
CIMMYT, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center, is named directly for its maize mandate.
Maize streak virus, transmitted by leafhoppers, is one of the most damaging viral diseases of maize in Africa.
Milpa, Practices Maize is the central crop of the traditional Mesoamerican milpa intercropping system.
Southern corn leaf blight caused the catastrophic 1970 US maize epidemic tied to Texas male-sterile cytoplasm.
The western corn rootworm, dubbed the 'billion dollar bug,' is the most economically damaging insect pest of maize in North America.
In the Other Atlases
Era Of Origin
Also in History Atlas: the era this subject comes from.
Originated In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.
Source Maize (Wikipedia)
Found In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Source Maize (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Maize (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundationlead description or Wikipedia lead (primary-uses)
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.
- lead section
History section
Maize was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte.
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