Ordered a pound of it this year and got some growing in the garden right now. Got it from a uncontaminated, heirloom, non-GMO grower in Alabama: https://raileyfarmandfield.com/shop/jimmy-red-corn-seed
A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
31–39 of 39 posts
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#32Cool story. I have a similar interest in barley for brewing. I like to find heritage or land race varieties to try. I often use Maris Otter[1], which is quite easy to obtain. However, others like Hana[2] and Chevallier[3] can be more difficult to buy. Scottish Bere[4] is another grain I'd like to try, but haven't been able to find any for sale, either whole grains or malted. Seems like only flour is available. [1] ht…
IIRC Simpson's Malts do a line of Chevallier malts.
eta: I may have misinterpreted... If it's malt you're seeking, maybe my comment helps. If it's grain for growing, I'd love to talk seed-swapping if you do lay hands on any.
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#33Maize has more human induced genetic diversity than any higher order organism. There are many "heritage" maize varieties grown for various reasons - my favorite is a type of popcorn that grows very small kernels (search for "tinybutmighty popcorn"). That said, this seems like mostly an advertisement for a brand of bourbon whiskey. Most of the specialty maize varieties have a similar origin story, usually with some dr…
Due to the genetic diversity and maize's character as an outbreeder, this variety has already gone through a severe genetic bottleneck due to it having been rescued from only two ears of corn. Generally, in saving maize seed, we look to save seed from a population of at least 100 plants (not ears) to maintain the intrinsic genetic diversity.
So the present-day variety is really not the same as the original variety. Too much of the genetics has been lost.
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#34I had a hard time with this title wondering how a bootlegger goes nearly extinct.
It's still messing with my head a bit every time I look at it, but my head is probably more easily messed with today than normally.
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#35I love this story. Wild/forgotten cultivated crop seeds are fascinating to me. I pick, taste and save as many different wild foods that I can find. I have found wild chives growing on an island in northern ontario, they're flowering in my backyard right now actually! I have sampled hundreds of different mulberry trees and saved the best tasting and largest berries to hopefully one day create a mulberry farm. I have e…
I would suggest trying Wild Garlic (ransoms) [1]. Very common in the UK and very strong garlic flavour. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allium_ursinum
Mash it into butter and put it on steak. Absolutely delicious. Or make it into a pesto.
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#36I love this story. Wild/forgotten cultivated crop seeds are fascinating to me. I pick, taste and save as many different wild foods that I can find. I have found wild chives growing on an island in northern ontario, they're flowering in my backyard right now actually! I have sampled hundreds of different mulberry trees and saved the best tasting and largest berries to hopefully one day create a mulberry farm. I have e…
> My white whale is a local pawpaw tree that I have yet to find growing anywhere in the local forests, despite many other foragers fruitful finds.
FWIW people hide them next to trees like horse chestnuts and magnolias, both of which have leaflets that look similar from a distance, to prevent folks from taking the fruit. Join your local native plant society, they will hook you up.
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#37Maize has more human induced genetic diversity than any higher order organism. There are many "heritage" maize varieties grown for various reasons - my favorite is a type of popcorn that grows very small kernels (search for "tinybutmighty popcorn"). That said, this seems like mostly an advertisement for a brand of bourbon whiskey. Most of the specialty maize varieties have a similar origin story, usually with some dr…
> Most of the specialty maize varieties have a similar origin story, usually with some drama about the "last owner" or "one field left".
Most of them? You've been seeing tons of these articles about heirloom corn? Show me.
This is common with most heirloom plants -- usually a small cluster lives on somewhere. I find it hard to believe it's an ad for whiskey when it's written by NPR; if anything, it's NPR trying to find southern farm news to appeal to certain parts of the US that would otherwise be outside of the NPR demographic.
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
Your warning at the end doesn't seem to square with your willingness to eat new varieties you've never seen or heard of before. How do you know beforehand that whatever mutation caused that Mulberry tree to produce fruit all season didn't also add toxic compounds to the berries? Is this a do as I say not as I do situation?
Living is a risk. The chance of toxicity occurring in new plants is possible but quite small, but it's not likely to kill you, just make you sick. Full recovery is highly likely. Life in perfect safety is not worth much to many people (inc. me), and indeed not possible unless you have a large cushion of money. Your small-c conservatism is fine for you and I won't judge you on it, but please don't expect it of others.
You seem to have misunderstood me as being in favor of perfect safety. I'm happy to eat a weird berry. This was meant as a joke about the excessively careful warning he put at the end of his post and how it didn't seem to jibe with the worldview he was otherwise advocating.
Re: A Nearly Extinct Bootlegger's Corn Gets a Second Shot (2018)
#39Cool story. I have a similar interest in barley for brewing. I like to find heritage or land race varieties to try. I often use Maris Otter[1], which is quite easy to obtain. However, others like Hana[2] and Chevallier[3] can be more difficult to buy. Scottish Bere[4] is another grain I'd like to try, but haven't been able to find any for sale, either whole grains or malted. Seems like only flour is available. [1] ht…
IIRC Simpson's Malts do a line of Chevallier malts. eta: I may have misinterpreted... If it's malt you're seeking, maybe my comment helps. If it's grain for growing, I'd love to talk seed-swapping if you do lay hands on any.
I know Crisp do sell Chevallier when available, but I didn't know about Simpsons.
I was specifically talking about malt, but I would be happy enough with a supply of grain and can then do my own maltings.