|
|
Post by castanea on Jan 8, 2010 12:17:47 GMT -5
|
|
|
|
Post by Alan on Jan 10, 2010 20:26:55 GMT -5
I don't know anything about the variety in particular, but just going from the picture I'm going to presume that this is a primitive type flint corn having been most likely derrived from a pod corn or a primitive meso american corn of Tuxpeno/Flint heritage. Triangular seeds and wide row spacing are characteristics of those primitive type corns. Some of them are fairly productive and do tend to do very well in low soil fertility environments.
|
|
|
|
Post by canadamike on Jan 10, 2010 21:04:23 GMT -5
There are many popular red flint corns in Europe, a lot of them in the warmer areas. I have ears of a couple of them here and I am trying to get more seeds.
The french have developped very productive flint and dent/flint corns under less than ideal conditions, dry land and weather... I should take pictures of what I have...but my house has just been sold and I am preparing to move, so I will be busy for a while...
|
|
|
|
Post by castanea on Jan 10, 2010 22:04:57 GMT -5
Thanks Alan and Michel. I never see much about corn growing in Europe and most seed companies that sell European veggie seed do not seem to sell corn.
|
|
|
|
Post by bunkie on Jan 15, 2010 11:00:29 GMT -5
castanea, i have heard that many europeans do not eat corn as we do in America, on the cob. they consider it food more for their animals.
|
|
|
|
Post by castanea on Jan 15, 2010 13:23:03 GMT -5
castanea, i have heard that many europeans do not eat corn as we do in America, on the cob. they consider it food more for their animals. Makes sense. I don't recall seeing much corn when traveling in Europe, either as a crop or on dinner menus. It's much different in China where corn is widely grown. |
|
|
|
Post by mjc on Jan 15, 2010 13:35:26 GMT -5
Italy is probably the one exception, though...polenta is made from corn, and for nearly the past 500 years has been made with it instead of chestnuts.
And part of the European distrust of corn has to do with pellagra...a nutritional disease when corn (maize) is not processed by using lime to free up the niacin and when it is a large part of the diet.
|
|
|
|
Post by Alan on Jan 15, 2010 22:05:21 GMT -5
Yes, flint corn in Italy is a pretty traditional crop. I've discussed some of those corns recently with our friend Stuart as well as my friend Jim Culpepper. The coastal regions of Italy are where most of these varieties are grown and there are some very interesting sources of Italian corn germplasm in the GRIN system, many are short season varieties with some very useful merits.
|
|
|
|
Post by blueadzuki on Jan 15, 2010 22:59:27 GMT -5
Actually this stuff looks a lot like Rouge d' Astarac to me, I wonder if they are closely related strains?
|
|
