This variety grows unusually tall—up to sixteen feet—and has aerial roots that secrete a mucus that drips around the plant. This secretion supports the growth of symbiotic bacteria that fix nitrogen and so fertilize the plant.[1]
There is commercial and scientific interest in this variety, and its genetics are being researched to develop other self-fertilizing varieties that would reduce or eliminate need for other fertilizers. A team at University of California, Davis is working on this under the auspices of the Nagoya Protocol, which aims to encourage equitable sharing of the benefits of such biodiversity.[1]
Further reading
Pankievicz VCS; Delaux, P. M.; Infante, V.; Hirsch, H. H.; Rajasekar, S.; Zamora, P.; Jayaraman, D.; Calderon, C. I.; Bennett, A.; Ané, J. M. (2022). "Nitrogen fixation and mucilage production on maize aerial roots is controlled by aerial root development and border cell functions". Frontiers in Plant Science. 13. doi:10.3389/fpls.2022.977056. PMC 9583020. PMID 36275546.
Daley, Jason (10 August 2018). "The Corn of the Future Is Hundreds of Years Old and Makes Its Own Mucus". Smithsonian Magazine.
Van Deynze, Allen; Zamora, Pablo; Delaux, Pierre-Marc; Heitmann, Cristobal; Jayaraman, Dhileepkumar; et al. (2018). "Nitrogen fixation in a landrace of maize is supported by a mucilage-associated diazotrophic microbiota". PLOS Biology. 16 (8): e2006352. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.2006352. PMC 6080747. PMID 30086128.
References
^ a b cYong, Ed (9 August 2018). "The Wonder Plant That Could Slash Fertilizer Use". The Atlantic.