Corn (Crop)

Corn, also known as maize, is a staple plant crop with a long history of human use. Corn originated in the Americas and was first harvested in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The plant occupies a unique place in classification: it is described as a vegetable in culinary contexts, a fruit in botanical terms, and a grain when considered as a cereal crop. Corn plants can reach exceptional sizes; the world record for a corn plant height is over 48 feet (14.6 m).

Corn’s multiple classifications reflect different ways people interact with it. As a vegetable, corn is consumed fresh in many culinary traditions. As a fruit, individual kernels are botanically fruiting bodies that develop from the plant’s flowers. As a grain, the dried kernels serve as a staple cereal and a source of starch. The long history of harvesting in southern Mexico marks corn as one of the earliest domesticated crops in human agricultural history, underpinning the development of complex societies in the Americas.

• Corn is also called maize.
• First harvested in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago.
• Described as a vegetable, a fruit, and a grain.
• World record corn plant height exceeds 48 feet (14.6 m).