2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Sugar corn (lat. Zea saccharata) belongs to the Cereals family. For the first time they began to cultivate it in America, more precisely in the territory of modern Mexico. Excavations prove that this plant was one of the main ones in the diet of local residents. In the lower layers of the excavations, small cobs were found, and in the upper layers, larger ones are already found, which indicates human activity in the selection of more productive forms.
Characteristics of culture
Sweet corn is very demanding for warmth, soil fertility and maintenance. The stem of this species is powerful, and can reach 8 meters in height. A large panicle develops at the top of the stem - this is a male inflorescence, in which a lot of pollen is formed. Female inflorescences are formed in the axils of sessile leaves. The female inflorescence is the ear on which seeds are formed after fertilization. The length of the cob can be up to 45 centimeters. Usually the seeds of corn are bare, but sometimes they are covered with scales.
Usage
Sugar corn is a powerful plant, gives a lot of green mass, and is used as a high-calorie feed for livestock. Sweet corn contains more sugar than other corn varieties and is rich in fat and protein. Very high quality corn oil is made from it, as well as canned. The ears at the stage of milk maturity are boiled or eaten raw. The culture is cultivated in all southern regions of our country for grain and for canning, and in the northern regions for obtaining green mass for livestock feed. Bread, flat cakes, kozinaki are made from sweet corn with honey.
Growing
Sweet corn is a thermophilic crop, but there are hybrids of it that yield excellent yields in temperate climates. On a personal plot, you need to choose a warm and well-lit place. The soil should be air and water permeable, slightly acidic. The site needs to be dug up in the fall, making compost or humus in a proportion of 0.5 buckets per square meter and adding 15 g of complex fertilizer.
The most current way to grow corn is through seedlings. To do this, it is necessary to prepare individual containers and sow in them one at a time - two grains in each to a depth of 2.5 - 3 centimeters. Containers with seeds should be placed in a warm, dark place before germination. As soon as the first shoots have appeared, it is necessary to take out the containers in the sun. It is important to ensure that the soil does not dry out.
In late May or early June, seedlings can be planted in the garden. At the time of transplanting sweet corn into the ground, it is advisable to arrange the plants in groups for better pollination at a distance of 40 - 45 centimeters from each other. Immediately after planting, the sprouts must be watered abundantly and closed on top with a large plastic container, the bottom of which has been cut off. Under such protection, the plant develops until the leaves begin to rest against the walls of the container. Further care consists in light loosening, watering with warm water and removing weeds.
Sometimes the roots of plants stick out from the soil, in which case you need to add earth and compost. When lateral shoots appear, they must be removed, sometimes the plant must be tied up. When flowering begins (if there is no wind), the panicles need to be shaken a little to make pollination more effective. Top dressing must be carried out at the moment when the cobs begin to pour in at the rate of 1 tablespoon of compost per bucket of water.
The cobs can be harvested at different stages of maturity. Many people like sweet corn in the milky ripeness stage, when the flesh of the grains is soft and juicy. Such corn must be eaten immediately, otherwise it withers and loses its taste. For long-term storage, corn is frozen. Before freezing, the ears are peeled from the wrappers, blanched in boiling water for 4 - 6 minutes (the exact time depends on the size). Then the cobs must be dried and each wrapped in foil, or cling film, and put in the freezer.
Recommended:
Sugar Kelp
Sugar kelp is one of the plants of the family called kelp, in Latin the name of this plant will sound like this: Laminaria saccharina L. As for the name of the family of sugary kelp, in Latin it will be like this: Laminariaceae. Description of sugary kelp Sugar kelp is a brown algae, which is a perennial plant endowed with a ribbon-like thallus plate, the length of which will be from one to twelve meters.
Sugar-shaped Handguard
Sugar-shaped handguard is one of the plants of the family called Umbelliferae, in Latin the name of this plant will sound as follows: Sium sisaroideum DC. (S. lancifolium auct., Non Schrenk.). As for the name of the sugary handguard family itself, in Latin it will be like this:
Sugar Apple
Sugar apple (lat.Annona squamosa) - a fruit tree, also called annona scaly. History Unfortunately, mankind does not have accurate information about the appearance of the scaly annona. It remains only to assume that the homeland of this peculiar fruit is South America.
Salt And Sugar In The Country
You cannot do without these two simplest food representatives in your country kitchen. You cannot cook delicious dishes without salt and sugar - soups, main course, desserts, compote. Without them, preservation of food for the winter is not possible. But not every summer resident, amateur gardener, gardener knows that except in nutrition, salt and sugar can be used as fertilizer or pesticides. By the way, other food products have similar functions, such as garlic, kefir, mustard and many others. But here
Sugar-producing Plants
Rarely does a person not like to eat something sweet, replenishing the loss of vitality and mental strength, or trying to overcome a nervous breakdown. The city man is so accustomed to shop sweets in the form of sugar, sweets, cakes … that he does not even think that plants "produce" sugar for him. Moreover, there are such plants, the leaves and berries of which are hundreds, or even thousands, times sweeter than sugar