Aug. 1, 1927.] Revision of the Flora >o'f the Bombay Presidency 16 



<Gard. Crops 25, t. 5^ Koern, and Wern. Handb. d. Getreidebaues I, 

 331-378, II,* 772-870 ; Harsbberger, Maize, in Contrib. Lab. Univ Pensylv. I 

 (1893), 75-202 \ Nicholls, Text-book Trop. Agr. (1892), 260-2 H5 ; Montgomery, 

 Corn Crops (1913), 1-275 ; Davy, Maize (1914) ; Stapf. in Fl. Trop, Afr, IX, 26. 



Pern. Names r Maize, Buta, Maka. 



Description .• Culms upto3 m, high, sometimes more. Leaf-sheaths terete, 

 more or less hairy upwards along the margin ; ligule short, truncate, thinly 

 membranous, more or less pubescent ; blades linear-ianceo'late, up to over 

 ■90 cm. long and 10 em. wide, glabrous or almost so, tips often drooping. 

 Male panicle Tap to over 20 cm. long; rhachis pubescent; spikelets up to 

 12 mm. long,- anthers 6 mm. long Feffiaale spike (cote) and grains varying 

 much in size and shape, the grains al?o in colour. 



Locality : Cultivated widely in the Presidency as a forage for cattle and as a. 

 vegetable and for (flour-. 



Origins The origin of Maize is a much discussed question. Some are of 

 opinion that it has been developed from Teosinte {Euohlcena)-, others that the 

 original wild form has become extinct. A more acceptable opinion is that it is 

 a hybrid between Teosinte and an unknown or extinct species resembling pod- 

 corn, a variety of Zea mays in which each kernel is enveloped in the elongated 

 floral bracts. 1 



Kuwada 2 who studied the number of chromosomes in Maize came to the 

 conclusion that Zea mays was originally derived from the hybridization between 

 Euchlcetm, and some unknown species of the tribe Afadrofagonece , long 

 chromosGMes belonging to the former and short ones to the latter, and that the 

 nuclei of its various individuals possess both kinds of chromosomes in various 

 combinations according to the law of chance. 



To explain the structure of the ear of Maize, Collins published evidence 

 wSiich indicated that the ear may have developed through the twisting of yoked 

 pairs of spikelets. Weatherwax 3 tries to refute this opinion. He contends 

 that dropping of rows of seeds is due to the discontinuance of a row of paired 

 spiikdlets and not to the loss of the pedicelled spikelets from yoked pairs, and 

 that there is no Indication that short rows represent long rows partially aborted, 

 bat that the abortion of spikelets or of rows in trie ear seems to be much more 

 constant as a characteristic of theories than of real ears. 



Genetics of Maize : Those interested in Maize from a genetic point of view 

 are referred to the more recent publications mentioned in the foot note. 4 



1 Collins. The origin of maize. Journal Wash. Acad. Sci. 2 (1912), 520. 



2 Kuwada, Y. Die Chromosomenzahl von Zea mays L. Ein Beitrag zur 

 Hypothese der Individualist der Chromosomen und zur Frage fiber die 

 Herkoinft von Zea mays L. Jour. Coll. Sci. Imperial Univ. Tokyo, 39 (1919), 1-148. 



3 Weatherwax, P. A misconception as to the structure of the ear of maize. 

 Bull. Torrey Bot. Club, 47 (1920), 359-362. 



* Blaringhem, L. — Production par traumatism d\me forme nouvelle de Mais 

 a caryopses multiples, Zea. Mays var. Polyspermia. Compt. Rend. Acad. Sci. 

 Paris 170, {1920) , 677^-679. 



Collins, G- N.— Structure of the maize ear as indicated in Zea-Euchlcena 

 hybrids. Jour. Agr. Res., 17 (1919), 127-135. 



Collins, G. N.— Dominance and the vigor of first generation hybrids. Amer. 

 Nat., 55(1921/), 116-133, 



Collins, J. L.— Chimeras in corn hybrids. Jour. Heredity, 10 (1919), 2-10. 



Emerson, R. A.— The nature of bud variations as indicated by their mode of 

 Inheritance, Amer. Nat., 36 (1922), 64-79. 



Hume, A. N.— A system for breeding corn or gregarious animals. Jour. 

 Heredity, 11 {1920). 191-192. 



Jones, D. F. — Segregation of susceptibility of parasitism in maize. Amer. 

 Jour. Hot.. 5 (1918), 295-300. 



Jones, D. F.— -The effect of Inbreeding and crossbreeding upon development. 

 Proc. Nation. Acad. Sc. y 4 <1918), 246-250. 



Jones, D. F.— Heritable characters of maize. Jour. Heredity, 11 (19201. 

 161-167. ' 



Jones. D. F.— Selection in self-fertilized lines as the basis for corn improve- 

 ment. Jour. Amer. Soc. Agron., 12 (1920), -77-100. 



Kempton, J. H.— Heritable characters of maize. Jour. Heredity, 11 (1920), 

 111-115. ' 



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