Posted on 06/29/2008 2:03:58 PM PDT by blam
Maize (Corn) May Have Been Domesticated In Mexico As Early As 10,000 Years Ago
Various unusually colored and shaped maize from Latin America. (Credit: Photo by Keith Weller / courtesy of USDA/Agricultural Research Service)
ScienceDaily (June 27, 2008) — The ancestors of maize originally grew wild in Mexico and were radically different from the plant that is now one of the most important crops in the world. While the evidence is clear that maize was first domesticated in Mexico, the time and location of the earliest domestication and dispersal events are still in dispute.
Now, in addition to more traditional macrobotanical and archeological remains, scientists are using new genetic and microbotanical techniques to distinguish domesticated maize from its wild relatives as well as to identify ancient sites of maize agriculture. These new analyses suggest that maize may have been domesticated in Mexico as early as 10,000 years ago.
Dr. John Jones and his colleagues, Mary Pohl, and Kevin Pope, have evaluated multiple lines of evidence, including paleobotanical remains such as pollen, phytoliths, and starch grains, as well as genetic analyses, to reconstruct the early history of maize agriculture. Dr. Jones, of the Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Pullman, will be presenting this work at a symposium on Maize Biology at the annual meeting of the American Society of Plant Biologists in Mérida, Mexico (June 28, 2008).
While macrobotanical remains such as maize kernels, cobs, and leaves have been found in dry mountain caves, such remains are not preserved in more humid lowland areas, so the conclusions based on such remains are fragmentary. Much smaller parts of the maize plant, like cellular silica deposits, called phytoliths, and pollen and starch grains, are preserved under both humid and dry conditions. These lines of evidence, along with genetic and archeological data,
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
Well, now the Mexicans will be wanting a cut from every bushel sold!
Maize Mash Stills maay have first appeared 99,999 years ago.
alton brown (tv show good eats on the food nerwork) is pleased.
Maize, what you pale faces call corn. For those of you too young to remember that’s from a T.V. commercial in the 70’s. But I don’t think the young lady used the term “pale face” but it’s what she meant.
I like my maize domestic... from Kentucky... Neat.
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...kinda like the french and their wines...LOL.
btt
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Gods |
Thanks Blam. |
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We have several corn mazes every summer ‘round these parts...
Gardening Ping!!!!
I’m putting in 3 more varieties of maize today, including a multicolored and a blue “popcorn.”
Om Nom Nom Nom.
Punny!!!!! LOL!
I’m growing a variety of corn called ‘Kandy Korn’ this year. Anyone else had any luck with this type?
Like almost everyone else, we’ve had some tough weather this year, so there will be no knee high by the 4th of July corn. The farmer’s corn in the field behind us is about the same size. I’m hoping we get a few ears before the snow falls again. :)
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They had maizeahol back then, too.