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Post by raymondo on Jul 10, 2012 23:19:28 GMT -5
I've seen several times now on this forum the statement that sweet corn is usually flint with the appropriate recessive alleles. Does this mean then that it would be possible to create non-sweet flints from sweet corn? Cross it with any old non-sweet to bring back the dominant allele then backcross to the sweet to ensure flintiness? This begs another question. How does on tell a flint from a non-flint? Does it just look kind of translucent?
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Post by Joseph Lofthouse on Jul 11, 2012 1:10:45 GMT -5
Spinning words, Tangled meanings, Jumbled interpretations.
There are at least two meanings for "flint corn": 1- One of the 4 major races of corn. 2- A phenotype of corn. These words are often used as if they are synonyms when they may or may not be synonyms for any particular cultivar.
About 70% of the genes in modern American sweet corn are descended from the "Northeastern Flint" race of corn. This race can be generally characterized by having a thick hard glassy endosperm. Modern American sweet corn shares this trait.
Only about 50% of the genes in modern American popcorn are derived from the Northeastern Flints. I still call popcorn a flint by phenotype even if it might be iffy to call it a northeastern flint by counting genes.
As I see it, the main differences between the traditional northeastern flints and sweet corn are in the amount of sugar in the endosperm, and especially in the tenderness of the kernels. As a vegetable, the northeastern flints can be quite hard and unpalatable even at a very young age.
I have been working for a few years on bringing genes into my sweet corn that were not derived from the northeastern flints, by crossing with races that were endemic to areas other than the northeast usa. It has been a slow process, because the corns that are most interesting due to being very dissimilar to the northeastern flints are not adapted to my climate. So it's been a struggle to overcome the phenotypic barriers that prevent crossing. But I'm making progress. I've extended my reach as far as Hopiland ("Tropical Highlands Race") and have gained increased cold-weather-seed-viability. Frosty benefited significantly from the Hopiland crosses. I've also incorporated the "Tropical Lowland Race" by making crosses with the Southern Dents. I will know this year how that shakes out. This was a fairly easy cross because the Southern dents already have a significant genetic influence from the Northeastern Flints.
I thought that I would do back-crosses with many of these corns, but it's a tremendous undertaking for one person, so I have been allowing open pollinated segregation among and between breeding lines.
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Post by mayz on Jul 11, 2012 2:01:31 GMT -5
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Post by darwinslair on Jul 12, 2012 21:41:25 GMT -5
my flints show wrinkled kernels on occassion. Saved a bunch and planted them in my backyard this year. Will see how they do. variable heights, none tasseled yet. Wondering if they will tassel at the same time.
From Rainbow Flint.
Tom
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Post by raymondo on Jul 13, 2012 6:42:02 GMT -5
Do you mean you selected out the wrinkly seeds and planted them up Tom?
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Post by darwinslair on Jul 13, 2012 7:05:56 GMT -5
Yes.
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