MAIZE. 77 



acreage — was 31-7 bushels (9-6 bags) ; in 1916-17 Eureka 

 variety yielded 46'8 bushels (14^ bags) ; in 1916 the average 

 yield for fifty competitors v^^as 3"2"1 bushels (9f bags), and in 

 1917 the average for one hundred competitors was 34*6 bushels 

 flOJ bags) ; while reasonably authentic yields of 108' 9 bushels 

 (33 bags) have been reported. Maize growing is particularly 

 well adapted to South Africa because of the low^ price of pro- 

 ductive land, relatively cheap labour, a long planting season of 

 at least eight consecutive weeks (whereas in the maize belt of 

 the United States the time is only from three to four weeks), 

 and a dry harvesting season which is largely responsible for the 

 phenomenally fine quality of South African maize. 



History. — Harshberger states that maize was probably 

 brought into cultivation in Southern Mexico about the begin- 

 ning of the Christian era. While the cultivation by Europeans 

 of most of the chief cereals ante-dates history, that of maize is 

 of comparatively recent times, i.e., within the last three cen- 

 turies. In 149-2 Columbus found it in common cultivation. Its 

 introduction into Europe, Africa, China and Asia Minor fol- 

 lowed shortly after. 



The word " maize " is derived from the Haytian word 

 ma'hiz. It is an Arawak word met with in many forms in 

 South America and the West Indies. Mielie comes from the 

 Portuguese word milho. The following are the words used to 

 designate maize in the countries named, viz. : — 



South Africa. Maize, mielie (and wrongly, mealie). 



England. Indian corn. 



America. Indian corn and corn. 



Germany. Turkischer korn. 



Sweden. Keren. 



Origin, Description and Classification. — Biological 

 Origin. — " The Graminea}," or grass family, includes most of 

 our common cereals, as maize, oats, wheat and rye. A dis- 

 tinguishing feature of the tribe Madeae, to which maize 

 belongs, is the separation of its staminate flowers (pollen-bear- 

 ing) from its pistillate flowers (seed-bearing). Two grasses re- 

 lated to maize and of common occurrence in Mexico — the 

 region in which maize is supposed to have originated — are 

 gama grass (Tripsacum dactyloides) and teosinte (Euchlaena 

 mexicana). 



Gama grass is distributed over the southern half of the 

 United States and usually is found on low, rich soil. At a 



