Moments of Enchantment; 137; Hopi Blue Corn

Moments of Enchantment, brought to you by the New Mexico Office of Cultural Affairs and 770 K-O-B Radio. Agriculture in New Mexico, with crops such as chili, apples and pecans, is emerging as a major 20th century industry. But farming has never been easy in this land of little rain. The Hopi Indians challenged adverse farming conditions with a crop called blue corn, more in a moment. Archaeologists are unsure how long corn has been cultivated by man, but the oldest known remains of corn or maize were found in New Mexico caves and are estimated to be 4,500 years old. Put another way, Indians used corn as a major food source and in their spiritual ceremonies long before the arrival of the Spaniards. New Mexico's Hopi Indians settled in the high desert with average rainfall of 12 to 15 inches annually and short growing seasons.

The need arose for drought-resistant crops, one of which is blue corn. Blue corn has been planted the same way for hundreds of years, unlike the blue corn grown by Pueblo Indians who irrigate from nearby rivers, Hopi Blue Corn is a dry land crop grown in deep sand and watered by nature. Six to eight seeds are dropped in a hole 10 or more inches deep in order to capture the ground's moisture. The corn's ears then form at ground level, protected from desiccating winds and early or late frosts. This chronicle of tolerance is generating interest in drought-stricken countries. Hopi Blue Corn with its high nutritional value has been sent to India, the Sudan and Kenya for test plantings. In the future this plant, which came from uncertain beginnings, may one day help feed people in arid climates around the world. To learn more about the ways of New Mexico's Indians, visit the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe. Moments of Enchantment brought to you by the New Mexico Office of Cultural Affairs. For Moments of Enchantment, I'm David Griffin.