Fields of tall corn plants are a common thing to see in the Midwest United States in late summer. They are as much a part of rural America as big red barns and cows.
But soon, tall corn plants might become shorter, replaced by plants only half as tall.
Cameron Sorgenfrey is a farmer in the Midwestern state of Iowa. He has been growing newly developed short corn for several years. His neighbors sometimes have questions about his smaller corn plants.
Changing agriculture
"As you drive across the Midwest, maybe in the next seven, eight, 10 years, you're going to see a lot of this out there," Sorgenfrey said. “I think this is going to change agriculture in the Midwest," he added.
Bayer Crop Science developed the short corn and tested it on 12,141 hectares in the Midwest. One promise the company made to farmers was a kind of corn that could survive powerful windstorms. The corn is not only shorter, but it also has a larger base. It can withstand winds of up to 80 kilometers per hour.
The smaller plants can grow closer together than taller kinds. That means farmers can grow more corn on the same amount of land, which increases their profits. This will help farmers facing lower corn prices in recent years. The smaller plants could also lead to less water use.
Dior Kelley is an assistant professor at Iowa State University. She is researching different possibilities for growing shorter corn. She said that because corn is the largest crop in the United States, more widespread use of the small kind will have a large effect.
Huge difference
"It is huge. It's a big, fundamental shift," Kelley said.
Last year, American farmers grew more than 363 million metric tons of corn. Most was used for animal feed, the fuel additive ethanol, or exported to other countries.
Scientists have long tried to develop better kinds of corn plants. But it has become more important for corn to grow even in very hot weather or when there is a lack of rain. Strong winds are another danger. In August 2020, a strong windstorm in the Midwest caused $11 billion in damage. It flattened both trees and corn plants only weeks before harvest time.
Kelley said she likes the idea of short corn. But she warns that short plants have their own problems to consider. For example, corn cobs that grow closer to the soil could be more at risk to diseases or mold.
Brian Leake is a Bayer spokesperson. He said the company has been developing short corn for more than 20 years. In a few years, he hopes farmers will be growing short corn everywhere.
I’m Jill Robbins.
