POP CORN 



J. G. Curtis, Rochester, N. Y. 



Farmers' Institute Lecturer 



The growing of pop corn is attracting 

 more attention than formerly as it has 

 proved to be a very satisfactory money crop 

 where the conditions are favorable. 



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] 



