Learning about CORN

[reed]

For about a year I have been reading everything I can find about corn, when I find something interesting I print and file it in my corn folder. Because someone else might also be interested I thought I should start putting it here in one place so they don't have to look it all up again.  If others have found similar resources I hope they will also post them here. (It is going to take a while to track them back down and link them in, they won't be in any particular order)

This isn't going to be a formal research paper like you might do for a college class, it will mostly just be a collection of links to government, university and other sources related to the topic. Most posts will just be a summary of the topic with links to the page(s) containing the information.

A Review of Sweet Corn Types from the University of Delaware  agdev.anr.udel.edu/weeklycropupdate/?p=142

Ornamental Indian Corn in Kentucky (variety trial results, growing, marketing) www2.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/ho/ho81/ho81.pdf

Ornamental Corn Cultivar Trial 2008 Iowa St. University www.ag.iastate.edu/farms/08reports/Muscatine/OrnamentalCorn.pdf

North Dakota Home Garden Variety Trials (includes other vegetables as well) www.ag.ndsu.edu/horticulture/hgvtresults2013.pdf

* I am interested in what is considered "ornamental corn" because I and I bet a lot of others never thought you could eat it. In my own experiments tasting about 60 or so ears as parched corn I found that probably 85% or more isn't good. Either bad tasting or hard and nasty.  Another 10 or 12 % is OK but nothing to write home about about and the rest is great!

[reed]

Corn Breeding Plant and Soil Science eLibrary passel.unl.edu/pages/informationmodule.php?idinformationmodule=1075412493

[DarJones]

I get a bit bent out of shape when someone starts out an article about genetics with bogus information. He states that half of the genes expressed in a kernel of corn come from the plant producing the ear and the other half from the pollen grain. This is not correct when applied to a kernel of corn. The endosperm in the kernel is triploid with 2 identical copies of a set of genes from the female parent and 1 set from the pollen. This results in dosage effects in the kernel. It is easiest to see in a cross of white X yellow corn. In the F2, the seed will segregate with some kernels white, some pale yellow, some medium yellow, and some dark yellow. This is caused by varying combinations of genes for carotenoids.

agdev.anr.udel.edu/weeklycropupdate/?p=142

[steev]

Well, this is why free discussion is important; that obvious error can be corrected and true data can be brought forth; the suppression of data leads to the suppression of truth, which leads to the growth of ideology, which is to say: self-interested bullshit.

[DarJones]

Fertilizer Steve? Are you generating Fertilizer?

[steev]

I think not; I think I'm promoting free discussion of data; did you think I was dissing your input? That wasn't my intent at all.

I certainly wish I could just generate fertilizer from thin air, but have not managed to do so, thus far. If I ever manage it. you'll be one of the first to know, as I'll post it here, for the benefit of all, expecting no more than occasional thanks and perhaps an occasional house-cleaning, when I'm too old to do it myself.

[reed]

Found this agronomy.wisc.edu/2015/03/31/we-would-all-go-up-to-minnesota-and-we-would-bite-the-ears-and-we-would-decide-which-one-we-liked-the-best/ by following a link in an old post by DarJones. Very interesting reading. I suspect there might have been more to it but to a large degree they developed a line of corn just by tasting and saving seed from the best cobs. I like the sound of that.

[reed]

Some more interesting stuff I don't want to lose tack of, passel.unl.edu/pages/informationmodule.php?idinformationmodule=1099683867&topicorder=5&maxto=6

[reed]

I'v been reading a bunch more on some of the links I'v found and am starting to wonder even more about some things. I have found more than one source that have charts showing how corn yield stayed flat form late 1800s till about 1930 when it started a continuing climb. While they mention increase in use of fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides and changing tillage practices the articles seem to me to indicate the increases are primarily due to development of hybrids, specifically development of single crosses from inbred lines.

I just wonder how they can say that unless they have run lots of trials on the crosses under conditions without the other factors also being used.

[steev]

In such things, there can be a lot of self-reference ("I found this and it has lots of implications"; not the same thing as "this is a true effect which can be of use").

When dealing with living organisms, in natural environments and climactic conditions, there are so many variables that it is incredibly arrogant to suppose we can "nail it down to our purposes" without lots of work and luck.

I certainly don't want to discourage that work or that hope for luck, but only to emphasize that one may have to pan a lot of gravel to find a nugget of gold, and really, what else have we to do: play golf or bridge?

[reed]

This isn't specifically about corn, just interesting for us beginners in plant breeding. Dropped it here so I could find it again easily. It has a list of some books that may have some good info.www.aces.uiuc.edu/vista/html_pubs/PLBREED/pl_breed.html

[reed]

Some more interesting reading. journal.ashspublications.org/content/122/3/319.full.pdf

[reed]

The thread here on the forum alanbishop.proboards.com/thread/5337/corn-breeding-heat-units-charts?page=6&scrollTo=111233 about heat unit charts and growing degree days got me interested in learning more about that so i did some searching and found this link to Purdue University with related information. Since I'm in Indiana it is of specific interest to me but I think should also apply about anywhere. Any way it is some interesting stuff with links to other interesting stuff about GGD and CRM for corn.

www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/corn/news/timeless/hybridmaturity.html

[reed]

I'v grown interested in inheritance as it relates to pericarp color. This article has some info ( digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1911&context=agronomyfacpub) so I dropped it here to make it easy to reference.