Cotton
Cotton plays and important role in mankind providing cloths and other material. Short information about different cotton plants and its cultivation.
Read How to Produce Corn Crop
From Kernel to Corn
Read the process of corn production, including planting and harvesting the crop, and transporting the corn to the grocery store.
Related
Climbing plants
Conifers tree having cones
Clouds
Most Viewed in Plants
Climate
Civil War, American
Conservation info: Protection of natural resources
A corn crop grows high in America's Midwest. Corn is America's leading crop, and is grown on one out of every four acres of farmland.
Corn
Corn is a plant of the grass family. Corn is one of the world's most important food crops. In some parts of Europe it is called maize. Indians were growing corn in the Americas when Christopher Columbus landed in the West Indies in 1492. By the 1600's its cultivation had spread to Europe, Africa and Asia. The United States produces about half of the world's corn. Corn is grown in every state but the main corn-growing region is in the Midwest. The Corn Belt includes Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota and Minnesota.
Corn, the most important crop in the United States, is grown by at least two-thirds of the country's farmers. One out of every four acres of farmland is used for the cultivation of corn. About two-thirds of the total yield is used to feed livestock such as cattle, hogs and sheep. These in turn are used for beef, pork and other foods. In this way corn plays an important part in supplying much of the nation's foodstuffs.
Consumed more directly, corn on the cob and popcorn are popular foodstuffs. In the southern states, corn is made into fried cakes called hominy grits. Oil extracted from corn is used for salads and in cooking. Cornstalks are used in the manufacture of certain kinds of paper. Corncobs can be used for fuel and in fertilizers. Pipes can be made from corncobs. Other products include cleaning materials, buttons and cosmetics.
After the United States, the chief corn producing countries include Brazil, Hungary, India, Italy, Mexico, Rumania, South Africa and Yugoslavia. Corn is grown in nearly every country in the world.
