THE PRODUCTION OF MAIZE, WITH SPECIAL 

 REFERENCE TO SOUTH AFRICA. 



By JOSEPH BURTT-DAVY, F.L.S. 



Botanist, Transvaal Maize-breeding Station, Vereeniging; 

 lately Government Agrostologist and Botanist, Union 

 of South Africa. 



Importance of the Maize Crop. It is perhaps not 

 generally realized that the world's consumption of maize 

 is greater than that of wheat, actually 447,000,000 bushels 

 more, while it takes only one-half of the acreage laid 

 down to wheat to produce the same yield of maize. At 

 the same time the foliage and stalks of the crop yield a 

 large quantity of highly nutritious stock food; it is 

 claimed that there is no farm crop grown which produces 

 a heavier yield per acre of stock food than maize. 



The importance of this crop as a source of food for 

 man and his domestic animals, and also as a source of 

 supply of alcohol, starch, glucose, dextrine, corn oil r 

 glycerine, cellulose, and other commercial products can 

 scarcely be over-estimated. The world's annual con- 

 sumption of maize is about 1,100,237,180 muids (of 

 200 lb.), i.e., 3,928,947,000 bushels; of this the European 

 Continent absorbs something- like 43,200,000 muids, and 

 the demand is constantly increasing, as new uses for this 

 cereal are being found. The European markets are at 

 present supplied chiefly from the United States, Argen- 

 tina, and South-east Europe. The local consumption of 

 the first-named country is steadily increasing, and its 

 surplus is decreasing (it has lately been a large buyer 

 from the Argentine), while the European markets are 

 looking out for fresh sources of supply. The climatic 

 conditions which control the distribution of the maize 

 crop are such that there is no unbroken area of suitable 

 land of any size left in the United States and Canada 

 fitted for maize growing. 



At present the whole of the African Continent produces. 



