Southern field crops (exclusive of forage plants) . h. corn. These races are From left to right, dent, flint, pop, sweet, distinguished by differ- and soft corn. pj^pp^ Jj^ ^J^g structure of the grains (Figs. 6i and 65), as well as by other dis-tinctive characters. Dent corn comprises all the varieties commonly grown inthe fields in the Southern States. Indeed, the bulk of theAmerican corn crop belongs to this race. (1) In dent corn a cross-section of the grain shows that thefloury or soft part, consisting chiefly of loosely arrangedstarch grains, comes quite to the top of the grain. Theshrink
Southern field crops (exclusive of forage plants) . h. corn. These races are From left to right, dent, flint, pop, sweet, distinguished by differ- and soft corn. pj^pp^ Jj^ ^J^g structure of the grains (Figs. 6i and 65), as well as by other dis-tinctive characters. Dent corn comprises all the varieties commonly grown inthe fields in the Southern States. Indeed, the bulk of theAmerican corn crop belongs to this race. (1) In dent corn a cross-section of the grain shows that thefloury or soft part, consisting chiefly of loosely arrangedstarch grains, comes quite to the top of the grain. Theshrinkage of this soft loose .starch during ripening causes the 112 coax VARIETIES 113 depression, or dent, which gives the name to the dent gi-ains of dent corn are usually much flattened andwedge-shaped, and longer or deeper than broad. Theplant may be small, medium, or very large, Southernvarieties being almost invariably large. (2) In flint corn the layer of soft loose starch does notcome to the top of the kernel but is surromrded, over the. Fig. — Showing, from Left to Right, Sections through Gr-\insOF Dent, Flint, Pop, Sweet, and Soft Corn. The shaded arpa repre-sents the homy layer; the dotted portion showsthe flourj- starch. top as well as on the sides, b} a horny lajer, which is alsomade up chiefly of starch, compacted into a dense, almosttranslucent mass. The difference Vjetween the horny andthe loose starch has been Ukened to that between iceand snow. The complete arch of horny starch over thetop of the grain insures the ripening of the kernel shrinking or denting. The grains of flint corn areusually less flattened, shorter, and more rounded andsmooth over the top and broader than dent corn. Thestalks are usually small and the ears are borne near theground. The flint corns mature quickly and are bestadapted to regions near the northern limits of corn pro-duction. In the South they are little grown and com-paratively unproductive. 114 BOVTHEE
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