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Zea mays - L.

Sweet Corn

Author	L.	Botanical references	200
Family	Gramineae	Genus	Zea
Synonyms
Known Hazards	None known
Range	Original habitat is obscure, probably S. America or Mexico.
Habitat	Not known in the wild.
Edibility Rating	4 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	3 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 2m at a fast rate.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid and neutral soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats

Cultivated Beds;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Pollen; Seed; Stem.

Edible Uses: Coffee; Oil.

Seed - raw or cooked. Corn is one of the most commonly grown foods in the world. The seed can be eaten raw or cooked before it is fully ripe[1, 2, 33, 34] and there are varieties especially developed for this purpose (the sweet corns) that have very sweet seeds and are delicious[183, K]. The mature seed can be dried and used whole or ground into a flour. It has a very mild flavour and is used especially as a thickening agent in foods such as custards[183]. The starch is often extracted from the grain and used in making confectionery, noodles etc[183]. The dried seed of certain varieties can be heated in an oven when they burst to make 'Popcorn'[183]. The seed can also be sprouted and used in making uncooked breads and cereals[183]. A nutritional analysis is available[218]. The fresh succulent 'silks' (the flowering parts of the cob) can also be eaten[55, 183]. An edible oil is obtained from the seed, it is an all-purpose culinary oil that is frequently used as a food in salads and for cooking purposes[13, 46, 183, 238]. The pollen is used as an ingredient of soups[183]. Rich in protein, it is harvested by tapping the flowering heads over a flat surface such as a bowl. Harvesting the pollen will actually help to improve fertilisation of the seeds[K]. The roasted seed is a coffee substitute[183]. The pith of the stem is chewed like sugar cane and is sometimes made into a syrup[183].

Composition

Figures in grams (g) or miligrams (mg) per 100g of food.

Seed (Fresh weight)

• 361 Calories per 100g
• Water: 10.6%
• Protein: 9.4g; Fat: 4.3g; Carbohydrate: 74.4g; Fibre: 1.8g; Ash: 1.3g;
• Minerals - Calcium: 9mg; Phosphorus: 290mg; Iron: 2.5mg; Magnesium: 0mg; Sodium: 0mg; Potassium: 0mg; Zinc: 0mg;
• Vitamins - A: 140mg; Thiamine (B1): 0.43mg; Riboflavin (B2): 0.1mg; Niacin: 1.9mg; B6: 0mg; C: 0mg;
• Reference: [218]
• Notes: 

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Cancer; Cholagogue; Demulcent; Diuretic; Hypoglycaemic; Hypotensive; Lithontripic; Stimulant; Vasodilator; Warts.

A decoction of the leaves and roots is used in the treatment of strangury, dysuria and gravel[218]. The corn silks are cholagogue, demulcent, diuretic, lithontripic, mildly stimulant and vasodilator[4, 9, 165, 176, 218]. They also act to reduce blood sugar levels and so are used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus[9, 218] as well as cystitis, gonorrhoea, gout etc[222]. The silks are harvested before pollination occurs and are best used when fresh because they tend to lose their diuretic effect when stored and also become purgative[9]. A decoction of the cob is used in the treatment of nose bleeds and menorrhagia[218]. The seed is diuretic and a mild stimulant[4]. It is a good emollient poultice for ulcers, swellings and rheumatic pains[4], and is widely used in the treatment of cancer, tumours and warts[218]. It contains the cell-proliferant and wound-healing substance allantoin, which is widely used in herbal medicine (especially from the herb comfrey, Symphytum officinale) to speed the healing process[222]. The plant is said to have anticancer properties and is experimentally hypoglycaemic and hypotensive[218].

Other Uses

Adhesive; Fuel; Oil; Packing; Paper.

A glue is made from the starch in the seed[13]. This starch is also used in cosmetics and the manufacture of glucose[61]. A semi-drying oil is obtained from the seed[57]. It has many industrial uses, in the manufacture of linoleum, paints, varnishes, soaps etc[21, 61]. The corn spathes are used in the production of paper, straw hats and small articles such as little baskets[74, 171]. A fibre obtained from the stems and seed husks is used for making paper[189]. They are harvested in late summer after the seed has been harvested, they are cut into usable pieces and soaked in clear water for 24 hours. They are then cooked for 2 hours in soda ash and then beaten in a ball mill for 1½ hours in a ball mill. The fibres make a light greenish cream paper[189]. Be careful not to overcook the fibre otherwise it will produce a sticky pulp that is very hard to form into paper[189]. The dried cobs are used as a fuel[171]. The pith of the stems is used as a packing material[171].

Cultivation details

Requires a warm position a well drained soil and ample moisture in the growing season[16, 33]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 to 6.8[200]. Requires a rich soil if it is to do well[201]. Corn is widely cultivated for its edible seed, especially in tropical and warm temperate zones of the world[200], there are many named varieties[132]. Unfortunately, the plant is not frost tolerant and so needs to be started off under glass in Britain if a reasonable crop is to be grown. There are five main types:- Sweetcorn is of fairly recent development. It has very sweet, soft-skinned grains that can be eaten raw or cooked before they are fully ripe. Cultivars have been developed that can produce a worthwhile crop even in the more northerly latitudes of Britain if a suitable warm sunny sheltered site is chosen[238, K. Popcorn is a primitive form with hard-skinned grains. When roasted, these grains 'explode' to form the popular snack 'popcorn'[238]. Waxy corn is used mainly in the Far East. It has a tapioca-like starch[238]. Flint corn, which shrinks on drying, can have white, yellow, purple, red or blue-black grains[238]. It is not so sweet and also takes longer to mature so is a problematic crop in Britain. There are many other uses for this plant as detailed below. Dent corn has mostly white to yellow grains. This and Flint corn are widely grown for oils, cornflour, cereals and silage crops. Corn grows well with early potatoes, legumes, dill, cucurbits and sunflowers[18, 20, 201], it dislikes growing with tomatoes[20].

Propagation

Seed - sow April in individual pots in a greenhouse. Grow on quickly and plant out after the last expected frosts. A direct outdoor sowing, especially of some of the less sweet varieties, can be tried in May.

Cultivars

There are many named varieties of this annual vegetable and cereal, with new forms being developed each year. At present there is not time to enter these in the database and, for sweet corn varieties, it is recommended that you consult the book 'The Fruit and Vegetable Finder' which is updated regularly and can be obtained from libraries.

Links

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[9] Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981 ISBN 0-600-37216-2
Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.

[13] Triska. Dr. Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn 1975 ISBN 0-600-33545-3
Very interesting reading, giving some details of plant uses and quite a lot of folk-lore.

[16] Simons. New Vegetable Growers Handbook. Penguin 1977 ISBN 0-14-046-050-0
A good guide to growing vegetables in temperate areas, not entirely organic.

[18] Philbrick H. and Gregg R. B. Companion Plants. Watkins 1979
Details of beneficial and antagonistic relationships between neighbouring plants.

[20] Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. 1978 ISBN 0-88266-064-0
Fairly good.

[21] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN 0-553-23827-2
Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.

[33] Organ. J. Rare Vegetables for Garden and Table. Faber 1960
Unusual vegetables that can be grown outdoors in Britain. A good guide.

[34] Harrison. S. Wallis. M. Masefield. G. The Oxford Book of Food Plants. Oxford University Press 1975
Good drawings of some of the more common food plants from around the world. Not much information though.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[55] Harris. B. C. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health 1973
Interesting reading.

[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man. 0
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[132] Bianchini. F., Corbetta. F. and Pistoia. M. Fruits of the Earth. 0
Lovely pictures, a very readable book.

[165] Mills. S. Y. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism. 0
An excellent small herbal.

[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.

[176] Yeung. Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, Los Angeles 1985
An excellent Chinese herbal giving information on over 500 species. Rather technical and probably best suited to the more accomplished user of herbs.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[189] Bell. L. A. Plant Fibres for Papermaking. Liliaceae Press 1988
A good practical section on how to make paper on a small scale plus details of about 75 species (quite a few of them tropical) that can be used.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[201] Allardice.P. A - Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers Ltd. 1993 ISBN 0-304-34324-2
A well produced and very readable book.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[222] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990 ISBN 0395467225
A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

Zea mays

j mitchell Fri Aug 22 2008

I have seen the various names for maize as cooked and used for food in africa.Whilst in Kenya as a child in Nakuru, the African folk called the thick sort of Putty consistency food with Meal and water POSHO.To eat with this they collected a wild form of Spinach they called MBOGA.They also used the Maize to make POMBE,their beer.What an amazing and versatilecrop.

Zea mays

MR. RAJIV MILI Mon Sep 8 2008

The morphology of the crop plant has not been described. The inclusion of the morphological features may give a clear concept of the plant. In addition, It will help the student, researchers and the academic community throughout the globe. The new learner may also be benefitted from the same. So, it is our request you to provide the above mentioned information. With regards Rajiv Mili Researcher, GBPIHED, India

Zea mays

Lawler Barnes Sun May 31 2009

Nature Abhors a Garden Nature abhors a Garden for 11/30/08 discusses how Native Americans and Spaniards processed corn with lime to make it edible; the posting for 11.23/08 explores the emotional ties that exist to corn.

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