---
title: The average ear of corn has 800 kernels in 16 rows
description: The average ear of corn has 800 kernels in 16 rows. Looking for more corny ag facts? See 30 corn facts. Get more Ag Facts at AgHires.com
---

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# [The average ear of corn has 800 kernels in 16 rows](https://blog.aghires.com/corn-facts/)

 Written by [Karyn Moyer](https://blog.aghires.com/author/karyn-moyer) | Aug 6, 2021, 4:34:00 AM

Anything from creamed to casserole, nearly everyone will have some form of corn at their Thanksgiving meal. That a good reason to pay tribute to grain and National Maize Day on November 23rd. Check out the following 30 facts about corn:

1. **In most countries corn is called maize.**
2. **Maize is a native Taino word meaning “sacred mother,” or “giver of life.”**
3. **The ear or cob is part of the flower, while the individual kernel is a seed.**
4. **The average ear has 800 kernels in 16 rows. **
5. **A cob will always have an even number of rows.**
6. **Except for Antarctica, maize is produced on every continent.**
7. **There are over 3,500 different uses for corn products.**
8. **The grain is used as a major ingredient in many food items like cereals, potato chips, cooking oil, and more.**
9. **Even juices and soft drinks contain sweeteners from the grain. A bushel (about 56 pounds) can sweeten 400 cans of soft drink.**
10. **Corn can also be found in many non-food items such as fireworks, glue, paint, dyes, laundry detergent, soap, antibiotics, cosmetics, and in the production of plastics.**
11. **Maize is also used as feed for livestock, poultry, and in pet food.**
12. **In 2014, the United States produced 35% of the worlds maize, while China produced 21%.**
13. **More than 90 million acres of land is dedicated to growing corn.**
14. **Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Michigan, Missouri, Kansas and Kentucky make up the “Corn Belt,” a region that has the ideal conditions to grow the crop.**
15. **In the days of the early North American settlers, corn was so valuable that it was used as money and traded meat and furs.**
16. **Maize is believed to be a human invention, domesticated from a grass called teosinte about 7,000 years ago. [Read more.](https://blog.aghires.com/corn-history-human-invention/)**
17. **The grain can be produced in many colors including blackish, blue-gray, purple, green, red, white and yellow.**
18. **There are thousands of hybrids, but most fall into six general types, which are dent, flint, pod, popcorn, flour, and sweet corn.**
19. **On average, the stalk measures 8 to 10 feet tall, however the height depends on the variety and the environment.**
20. **The world record for tallest stalk is over 33 feet.**
21. **The stem is commonly composed of 20 internodes.**
22. **A leaf, which grows from each node, is generally 4 inches wide and 4 feet long.**
23. **Male flowers are borne on the tassel, which releases pollen that is easily spread by wind.**
24. **Elongated stigmas, called silks, emerge from the husk leaves at the end of the ear. They are like tufts of hair, often pale yellow, and 7 inches in length.**
25. **At the end of the silks is a carpel, which may develop into a “kernel” if fertilized by a pollen grain.**
26. **The maximum size of kernels is about 1 inch.**
27. **It takes 91 gallons of water to produce one pound of corn.**
28. **Before the 20th century, all corn harvesting was by manual labor. [Read more.](https://blog.aghires.com/wwii-corn-harvested-hand/)**
29. **The first mechanical corn harvester was developed in 1930 by Gleaner Harvester Combine Corporation of Independence, Missouri. [Read more.](https://blog.aghires.com/first-mechanical-corn-harvester-developed-in-1930/)**
30. **One acre of corn eliminates 8 tons of carbon dioxide from the air.**

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Sources:  
USDA  
[Science Kids](https://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/food/corn.html)  
[Just Fun Facts](http://justfunfacts.com/interesting-facts-about-corn/)  
[Tons of Facts](http://tonsoffacts.com/28-awesome-and-interesting-facts-about-corn/)

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