POP CORN 
J. G. Curtis, Rocnester, N. Y. 
Farmers’ Institute Lecturer 
The growing of pop corn is attracting 
2 > more attention than formerly as it has 
Ee \\ proved to be a very satisfactory money crop 
ee | \ where the conditions are favorable. 
PR ty The pop corns are a special group of flint 
corns used for “ popping ”’ as the name sug- 
gests, for eating out of hand or in confec- 
tions. They are characterized by the small 
\ / size of the kernels and their excessive hard- 
ness, and by the large proportion of horny 
substance contained in the kernels, which 
consists of a large percentage of moisture and gives the kernels the 
property of popping, or turning almost completely inside, out on 
the application of heat. 
The stalks of pop corn are considerably smaller than those of 
field corn, but on good soil will average about eight feet in height. 
The actual popping of the kernels is due to the expansion of 
moisture in the starch cells, the application of heat converting 
the moisture into steam, making the cell walls give way and caus- 
ing an explosion with sufficient force to change the kernel into a 
large, irregular, flaky mass that has an especial value as an edible 
product. 
While in popping it loses in weight about 10 per cent., due to 
the evaporation of moisture by the heat employed, it should in- 
crease in bulk in the ratio of about sixteen to one. There are 
several factors which control this result, such as the even appli- 
cation of the heat and the condition of the corn. It may be too 
damp or too dry for best results, and, since the moisture content 
is high when the corn is harvested, it is usually held over one 
season before marketing. 
(1534) 
