#corn plants

The Legacy of Painted Mountain Corn Part 1:

November is Native American Heritage Month, making it the perfect time to learn about a key food plant domesticated by indigenous people of the Americas – corn aka maize (Zea mays). The corn shown in the photos is Painted Mountain Corn, which we'll learn more about in subsequent posts. While not an authentic indigenous heritage variety, this corn is well-suited to growing conditions in the UK.

In the past, present, and future of indigenous peoples, maize holds a place of nutritional, culinary, cultural, and spiritual significance. According to the current archeological information, the story of maize began 9000-8600 years ago in the Balas Valley of tropical southwestern Mexico where ancient indigenous people domesticated a nutritious wild grass called Teosinte (Zea mays ssp. parviglumis).

Natural genetic variation in the wild species meant that certain individuals had larger glumes (seed-holding structures), single stalks, non-shattering rachis (central stem), and kernel case formation. All these traits made these Teonsinte plants easier to harvest and process into food. By 4000-3000 years ago, maize cultivation had spread from Mexico to much of Mesoamerica and South America with North American peoples adopting maize cultivation approximately 1000 years ago.

In the hands of these skilled cultivators, maize was selectively bred into a marvellous array of varieties for different culinary purposes.

Join me next time to learn about this specific variety of hybrid corn, and what makes it different from true indigenous corn varieties.

Another sleeping style is simply dropping in: sleep early and wake up late. I am not sure what is wrong with my body, and I do not want to worry too much. After waking up, I cleaned around the house while waiting for my nephew. Then we went out for a very late lunch before doing some shopping. We then returned to my village to do some farm work. Last time, I could only spread fertilizer on two rows of corn plants in a bed. Today, my nephew and I completed another two plant beds. There is only one left, but the sun has almost set. After returning to my mother's house, we rested briefly before heading out with my mother and sister to shop for groceries. My mother asked me to go grocery shopping before I went home today, but I insisted on going with her because she is not eating well. Whenever my mother loses her appetite, we usually take her out to lunch or dinner at a restaurant. You know how sometimes you get tired of cooking and want to eat out.

Such a long ramble just to reassure myself that, despite having done nothing related to my thesis, I have been extremely productive in various ways. It’s important to forgive yourself sometimes.

I did not take a photo today, so I used an old gif of myself scattering fertilizer on the corn plant bed. I spread fertilizer using a pvc tube that had previously been used to transport my brother's fishing rod. This way, I do not need to bend over.

You grubby gobs asked for corn

Here is

Today’s backyard garden harvest: 

Seen while walking: 

More of today’s backyard garden harvest: 

The corn is looking strong: 

We got a little rain today but these were just the clouds that thundered & threatened while I was grilling but they never delivered: 

Print left by a homo sapiens with trace homo neanderthalensis ancestry (aka me): 

This is the second romaine lettuce that we’re letting go to flower so we can collect seeds. The leaves at this stage are a little bitter (I know because I ate one) but still perfectly edible: 

I don’t think we’ll get any grapes this year. Despite the abundance of pollinators, the flowers just seem to have withered like they weren’t pollinated: 

The view of the grill: 

The view from the grill: 

Wednesday tomatoes - 2 Big Beef & a Red Beefsteak with squirrel bites: 

One: 

Two: 

Three: 

Four: 

Five: 

Six Eastern Swallowtail caterpillars on our parsley. We have about this many every year & the annual survival rate for them to become butterflies is 0 to 1 because birds think they’re yummy: 

The Plot 420 report for Wednesday.

The Big Boy purple hull peas are breaking ground: 

The first planting of corn’s tassels are producing pollen & the honeybees are doing their thing: 

The Black Beauties are starting to make: 

So is the yellow squash: 

Onions with strawberries: 

Onions without strawberries. Conditions in both containers are identical except one has 2 strawberry plants in it. It might just be a coincidence but we’ll see how the experiment of adding strawberries to the onion pot at the house goes: 

Heading home from Plot 420. The field is beautiful & we see a lot of professional photographers photographing couples & families in them but every time I see folks standing out there, all I can think is “chiggers & ticks”: 

Meanwhile, back at the house: 

Afternoon tomatoes - 1 Big Beef & another squirrel bitten Red Beefsteak: 

One of our community garden neighbors gave us some yellow squash so my queen made squash & onions to go with the rest of tonight’s dinner: 

Joe Pye weed going to seed: 

We got mystery cucurbits sprouting up in our late corn planting: 

Our chaste tree abuzz: 

The blossoms aren’t just for insects either: 

Friday’s backyard garden harvest: 

Monday’s blueberry harvest: 

Glad to see the return of the tiny metallic green bees to the backyard garden: 

Our evening primrose doesn’t always seem to know when evening is: 

We went to Plot 420 & a week’s worth of not being able to get out there due to the rain meant the grass was nearly knee high. It is going to take a few days of work to get everything cleaned up to where we want it to be. 

However, the marigolds & Black Beauty eggplants were doing just fine: 

The corn is looking healthy but needs some serious weeding: 

We transplanted our Abe Lincoln & Lemon Boy tomato seedlings into the ground today: 

The Invisible Man: