#maize #agriculture #harvest #storage

The grain crop can be harvested when cob-sheath turns brownish, grains become hard and they do not contain more than 20 per cent moisture in them.
In case of indigenous varieties the plants start yellowing and drying along with maturity of the cobs but in case of new plant types the plants may remain green at the time of full maturity of cobs.
The difference in length of growing season between early and late hybrids is more in the number of days from planting to silking than in the days from silking to maturity.

Physiological Maturity

When moisture content decreases to 30-35% the stage is physiological maturity. Black layer formation is an another indication of maturity of corn.
The area near the tip of all the mature kernels appear dark to the naked eye. It can be observed by either cutting the matured kernel length wise into half or by breaking the tip of the kernel off with thumb nail.
The appearance of black layer signals that the transport of photosynthates into the kernels has stopped.
Black layer appear first in kernels at tip of the ear and last in the kernels at the base of the ear. An individual ear can be considered to be essentially matured when atleast 75% of the kernels in the central part of the ear have black layer from the time of maturity of corn ear and grain is essentially a matter of moisture loss.
The rate of moisture loss after physiological maturity depends more on weather than any other factor.

Methods Of Harvesting

There are two methods of maize harvesting:

Plucking of cobs

The ears are removed from the standing plants and they are piled to open for twenty four hours and they are spread for drying in the sun. In this method stalks may be used as green fodder.

Stalk cutting

The plants are cut and piled up in the shade and the cobs are removed after two or three days of harvesting. The dried plants are used for haymaking.
Maize grown for fodder are harvested at the milk to early dough stage. The earlier harvested crop usually yields less and is poor in protein content. For silage making late dough stage is preferred.

Sorting And Drying of Maize Ears

After harvest, sort out all off - type maize ears, particularly those showing different colours and texture, and the diseased ears, before placing them in bins to dry.
A good sorting at this time considerably reduces the task of sorting after the maize ears have been dried to the desired extent (10 to 12 percent moisture content).



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