Shop Now View Cart

Is Glass Gem Corn Real? Can You Eat It?

Is Glass Gem Corn Real? Can You Eat It?

There aren’t many vegetables with a Facebook page, let alone one with nearly 19,000 followers, but “Glass Gem” corn is one of a kind. Because of its translucent, rainbow-coloured kernels, it became an Internet sensation.

Growers of Glass Gem claim that the crop has inspired thousands of people to participate in seed saving and reconnect with ancient food ways. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny tells the story of how this unusual corn made its way from Oklahoma to Cornville, Arizona—and then to the rest of the world.

Brittle corn stalks around Flagstaff’s Observatory Mesa’s backyard garden. It looks dry and normal, but once the husk is stripped, it is full of surprise. The corn is filled with blue, green, purple, and yellow stripes. Fritzinger has been growing Glass Gem maize since she saw a photo of it a few years ago.

Due to wind, the corn gets wind-pollinated, and by mixing with other types of heirloom varieties, creates wild new appearances, and a reminiscent red and white swirl of peppermint candy.

Colourful #maize was first grown by Carl Barnes, an Oklahoma individual who wanted to explore the roots of his Cherokee. He began to work with old maize varieties and rediscovered features his tribe, Osage and Pawnee, had lost. He brought two little ears to the original plant rally, where the rainbow colours captivated a grower named Greg Schoen.

glass gem corn | hthrd | Flickr

Barnes and Schoen became close friends. Schoen brought a handful of kernels to his New Mexico home and crossed them with Pueblo popcorn. Ears appeared with not only brilliant colours but also a shiny glasslike hue. Schoen saw it as more than just a pretty plant. It was a relic from the past that had almost been lost.

A photo of the multicoloured maize with the original title of Greg Schoen’s “Glass Gem” was posted online and it spread rapidly like a fire. There were thousands of orders for seeds.

Glass Gem maize is not sweet maize but is delicious as popcorn or meal. #McDorman adds it to his coffee, which is a traditional Mexican beverage known as Pinole. However, he claims that growing Glass Gems is about more than just food or beauty. It conserves stories and a sense of place.

#PlantScienceFacts

The best of skin care in a PlantScience CareBox

If you haven’t checked our plant based skincare solutions available now in India, you are really missing something unique. Being a company driven by doctors who believe in researching the best things in nature to cure human ailments, we have spent decades worth of time decoding the secrets from the plant world and converting them into efficient natural products. Visit our store today to understand more about how you can benefit.

Plant Science CareBox is an amazing opportunity sample the best of PlantScience before getting hooked. Our CareBox comes with a promise of skin care, hair care, hand care and the best face care solutions in a simple gift box. Click here to check out the CareBox here on amazon.

WHAT IS PLANTSCIENCE?

PlantScience blog is an insightful discussion to understand and explain the science behind the great success of plants – how plants live, survive. Nature at its best is a great repository of knowledge and most of it is still a mystery to our minds. However, at Atrimed PlantScience, we have resolved to investigate, comprehend, and apply nature’s best-kept secrets for the benefit of our health. We believe in thinking beyond, knowing beyond and using the best research capabilities to understand the science plants use to live, thrive, adapt and grow. In this blog, you will find details of some interesting plant facts, the science behind them, snippets of history, updates about science and many interesting secrets. Read, subscribe, share your comments about PlantScience with us. Thank you!

PlantScience Logo

You might like our PlantScience skincare offerings that will help heal, restore and nurture your skin in the most natural way – With the goodness of plants in their purest form and in the scientific way possible. Click here to check out our PlantScience store today.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.