Return to Elementary Science 2
“Can you tell me, Fred, what these big seeds are?” said Norah. “I picked them out from the chicken’s food. They are not like any of the grains of corn.”
“Ah,” said Fred, “but they are grains of corn. This corn is sometimes called maize, sometimes Indian corn. We had a lesson on maize the other day; so, if you like, we will chat about it now.
“Let us begin with the plant itself. It grows from six to ten feet high. Its stem is very strong and about as thick as your wrist. It is hollow and jointed, like the stems of the other corn-grasses. The leaves spring from the joints in the stem. They are long, broad, and pointed, and the veins in them run side by side. The ear is called a cob. There is one in the corn-dealer’s window. Let us go and look at it.”
Away they ran, and were soon round the shop window. Fred made them compare the cob with the ears of wheat, barley, and oats.
“How very large it is by the side of the other ears of corn, and how closely the grains are set,” said Norah. “No wonder it has such a very strong stem.”
“Let us now go back to the plant again,” said Fred. “Teacher made us think of those long, broad leaves. All the time the ear is growing the leaves fold themselves round it. They cover it up in a sort of sheath, to protect it.
“When this sheath is no longer wanted the leaves spread open, and the ear peeps out, able to take care of itself.”
“Maize grows in the warm countries of the world,” said Will. “It would never ripen in such cold lands as ours.”
“As the grains are so large,” said Norah, “I suppose this kind of corn is better than wheat or oats or any of the others.”
“No,” said Fred, “you are wrong. The biggest things are not always the best. Maize contains very little gluten. It consists mostly of starch. Maize-flour is not good for making bread.
“Maize is used very largely for making corn-flour for puddings and custards. This corn-flour is only the starch of the grain. I daresay Norah could tell us how to get the starch from the maize-flour.”
Return to Elementary Science 2
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