342 MANUAL OF POISONOUS PLANTS 



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A plant cultivated for so long a time by the Indians and civilized man ha: 

 naturally given rise to diverse forms which we regard as nothing more thai 

 races of the very polymorphic species Zea Mays. 



Some years ago Dr. Watson obtained from Moro Leon, through Profc 

 Duges, some corn which he considered a new species, calling it Zca canina 

 He says : 



The natural supposition was that we had here at least the original wild state of GUI 

 cultivated maize. A careful comparison of the two, as thorough as the material at han<j 

 of the cultivated forms would permit, has led me first to doubt the probability of this, atiii 

 now to consider the form in question a distinct species. The differences upon which thi, 

 conclusion is based are in the habit of growth, the arrangement of the staminate spikelets, an; 

 the nervation of their glumes, the form of the glumes of the pisttillate flowers, and th 

 ready disarticulation of the ripened ear. 



Dr. Harshberger, who is certainly a most careful observer, and who car 

 ried on some most interesting experiments on hybrids, considers our maiz 

 of hybrid origin and Zea canina is a hybrid of corn and Euchlaena. He says] 



Maize relates itself botanically to a native Mexican grass, teosinte (.Euchlaena met 

 icana) ; and the fertile hybrids of this grass and maize are known, producing a plar 

 described by Watson as Zea canina. From the peculiar behavior of these hybrids, tt 

 writer has suggested that our cultivated maize is of hybrid origin, probably startin 

 as a sport of teosinte, which then crossed itself with the normal ancestor, producing ou 

 cultivated corn. This is speculative, but there cannot be any doubt that the close relatioi 

 ship of maize and teosinte points the way to the determination of the botanical charactei 

 of the original wild corn. Recently, Montgomery has suggested a theory as to tt 

 *nature of the maize ear, in which, in conclusion, he states that corn and teosinte ma 

 have had a common origin, and that in the process of evolution the cluster of pistillal 

 spikes in teosinte were developed from the lateral branches of a tassel like structur 

 while the corn ear developed from the central spike. It is probable that the progenitd 

 of these plants was a large, much-branched grass, each branch being terminated by a ta: 

 like structure bearing hermaphrodite flowers. 



Corn holds the first place in the list of crops produced in this countr t 

 and North America produces four times as much as the remainder of th 

 world. According to C. P. Hartley, Europe stands second, South Ameri> 

 third, and Africa fourth. As a corn-producing country the United States 

 no rival ; Argentina stands second, Hungary third, and Italy fourth. T 

 average corn yields in four central states for five years, 1902-1906, were 

 follows : 



State. Bushels. 



Illinois 342,115,835 



Iowa 301,666,1 76 



Nebraska 239,835,262 



Missouri 210,082,426 



Maize is one of the most important cereals of North America, being use 

 as a food for man and stock, in the manufacture of starch and glucose, and \ 

 medicine, the corn silk being used as a mild stimulant and diuretic. The cj 

 from the embryo is a yellow viscid transparent liquid having a peculiar ode 

 of corn meal. The silk contains maizenic acid. 



Injurious properties. In many sections of the country where corn is grow 

 and cattle allowed to feed on corn stalks, a disease occurs which has bee 

 called the corn stalk disease. This has been attributed to various causes sue 

 as corn smut, a bacterial disease, nitrate poisoning, bacterial poisoning, ar 

 impaction of the stomach. Corn stalks are not easily digested and it is not 

 be wondered at that impaction should occur when cattle do not have access 

 plenty of water. 



