Corn Facts & Maze Facts
Corn Facts
Corn originated in North, Central and South America
Some petrified corn dates back over 5,000 years
Mayan, Aztec and Inca Indians were the 1st corn farmers
Corn leaves contain large amounts of sugar and were used as "chewing gum" by the Indians. They also made "popcorn" by roasting dry kernels in a fire. Corn was also ground to make flour, soup and pudding.
Indians taught settlers how to grow corn by digging a small hole, dropping in kernels AND a small fish, then covering them with foil. The fish was used for fertilizer.
Corn was so valuable to the settlers, that it was used in place of money
Corn is a grass
Today's corn is much different than that of our ancestor's. Today's corn is much taller and produces much larger ears
Average ear of corn is 12" to 14" in length and contains approximately 800 kernels arranged on 16 rows
Each corn plant has the ability to form 6 to 10 ears, although only one to two actually develop
Each individual silk is attached to a potential kernel site (no pollination = missing kernels)
Tassel is male part of plant
Silk is female part of plant
Corn is usually planted in March, April, May, June or July
Corn usually takes 90-120 days to mature
Bushel of corn weighs 56 lbs.
There are approximately 72,800 kernels in a bushel
The Corn Belt is comprised of Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and Minnesota. 50% of all corn grown in the US comes from there.
Thre are over 3,500 uses for corn. Some include soap, "packing peanuts", ink, absorbent, auto fuel, livestock feed, sweetener, oil and people food
Corn is the #1 sweetener in most soft drinks
Corn likes warm soil (55º or more)
Corn is planted 1" to 2" deep and 10" and 12" apart in a row
Always plant at least two rows so corn can pollinate and develop ears
One tiny seed can produce between 800-1000 new plants
Only 8% of the weight in a box of Corn Flakes is corn
Corn is beneficial to the environment as it absorbs carbon dioxide and gives off oxygen (just like a rainforest)
Corn = Maize (in Spanish)

class="style2"> Maze Facts
Maze = Labyrinth (lab-i-rinth)
Mazes date back at least 4000 years
Mazes originally were not puzzles, but rather a single convoluted path.
During Medieval times, mazes were used as a form of protection from marauders.
Farmers protected crops, livestock and property with mazes.
Castle often had mazes to confuse enemy attackers.
Puzzle mazes began during the Italian Renaissance for the amusement of Kings and Princes.
19th century provided the first hedge mazes for public amusement.
Japan built over 200 mazes during the 1980's.
Britain has over 125 public mazes.
1st cornfield maze was created in 1993 in Pennsylvania.
Today, over 1,000 cornfield mazes are grown in the US annually.
The corn from the mazes will be harvested for cattle feed.