What in the Soviet Union was called the queen of the fields. "Queen of the Fields": everything you didn't know (or forgot) about corn. Vegetable salad with corn

QUEEN OF THE FIELDS / local history essay /

Columbus brought corn from America to the Old World, among other curiosities. And in Russia, Khrushchev is considered the discoverer of this culture. Although corn has been grown in the southern regions of the country since the 19th century. However, it was this politician who debunked Stalin's personality cult who created another cult - corn. He staked on it in the struggle for the material well-being of the Soviet people. And lost outright. The words "corn epic" have become synonymous with voluntarism and hatred, and the plant culture itself was shamefully expelled from our agriculture and undeservedly forgotten. In 1957, in the Kostroma region, as well as almost everywhere in the Soviet Union, the struggle for the corn cob was at its peak. The correspondent of the "Middle class" Zinaida NIKOLAEVA tried to restore the history of fifty years ago.

"Tank in the hands of a soldier"

In 1955, Soviet leader Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev visited the American farmer Roswell Garst in Iowa. Most of all, our leader was struck by the huge cobs of corn. New varieties bred in the USA gave high yields, and feeding cows with this crop is an excellent milk yield. The possibilities of corn seemed limitless to Khrushchev, and, given the boundless expanses of the Soviet Union, the chance to achieve success in developing the country's economy in the shortest possible time seemed to him quite real. The fact that we have a significant part of the country - a zone of risky farming, and corn - loves the heat, Khrushchev was not very embarrassed. Where it is impossible to get grain, we will grow cereals of the maize family for green mass, he decided.
On September 1, 1956, the All-Union Seminar on Corn was held in Moscow. Then Khrushchev called for the first time to grow it everywhere. But there was no talk of the Arctic. However, the executors of the will of the first - local functionaries - brought the idea to the point of absurdity, trying to please the ambitious leader. They began to sow corn in Kazakhstan, and in Yakutia, and in Transbaikalia, and in Chukotka ... “Corn, comrades, is a tank in the hands of fighters, I mean collective farmers; this is a tank that makes it possible to overcome barriers, overcome obstacles on the way to creating an abundance of products for our people, ”said Khrushchev. And tanks are not only not afraid of dirt, but also cold.

And it's all about her

Enormous funds were invested in the implementation of the idea. In Dnepropetrovsk, the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Maize was created, which engaged in plant breeding. Scientists of the Timiryazev Academy, as well as all agricultural universities of the country, were involved in agrotechnical developments.
To the fullest, agitprop earned. Since 1956, the monthly magazine "Corn" began to be published in the Union. The first issue began with a far-fetched quote from Lenin: “The advantages of corn, in a number of respects, have apparently been proven ... To achieve the goal, it is necessary to work out a number of very precise and carefully considered measures to promote corn and educate the peasants in the culture of corn.” Ilyich wrote this in 1921. Other great people were also quoted. For example, Academician Timiryazev, who claimed that 1 hectare of forest can support the breathing of 30 people, and 1 hectare of corn - 150.
The current goal of the widespread introduction of culture is indicated in the published “Appeals of the Central Committee of the CPSU for May 1”: “Collective farmers and collective farmers, workers of MTS and state farms, agricultural specialists! Expand crops in every possible way and increase the yield of corn - the most important source of increasing grain production and creating a solid fodder base for livestock!
Nikita Khrushchev was specific in his speeches: “What does it mean to get, for example, 500 quintals of corn per hectare? This is a corn crop that will make it possible to obtain 80 quintals of milk, or 3.5 quintals of butter, or 16 quintals of beef in live weight (8 quintals in slaughter) per hectare.”

Moderate, perky

In the first years, the magazine "Corn" was very serious - scientific developments, features of agricultural technology, new in industrial processing, best practices of Soviet and foreign peasant farms. The same Garst, from whom this whole epic began, appeared on the pages of the publication with a detailed report on seed selection. In subsequent years, the magazine became more diverse in subject matter. Historical anecdotes, recipes for cooking dishes from this culture, poems, charades, songs, cryptograms, rebuses, crossword puzzles about corn were published here, and in the “Crusher” section - feuilletons, pulling loafers and parasites of the collective-farm-state-farm front.
Here are some examples of agitprom's creativity. Song titled "Love Came":
“We feel good along this narrow path,
Come here together in the evening,
The corn stood up high
And something softly whispers in the wind.
Well, why not - “Straighten up you, high rye, sacredly keep the secret ...” in the Soviet way?
And the authors recommended singing this song "moderately, provocatively." It is called - "Everyone is happy with corn":
"What is corn
We will tell you friends -
Yes, the Soviet Union
You can't live without it!
Everyone knows that she:
Bread, flour, cereals, glucose,
Butter, meat and viscose,
And apparently, for good reason
Serves as fodder for livestock.
Beer, molasses, biscuits,
Very tasty sweets
Both wine and chocolate
Everyone is happy with corn.”
There were also puzzles for intelligence for schoolchildren. For example: “100 chickens ate 100 kg of corn in 100 days. How many kg of corn will 10 chickens eat in 10 days?

Do you want fat, Elisha, more corn!

This ditty reflects the economic incentives for involving peasants in corn growing. Who grows this crop more, he, accordingly, earns more and lives better. The Party demanded that the total area of corn (both for grain and for green mass) should be increased to 28 million hectares by 1960 against 18 million hectares in 1955 and 4.3 million hectares in 1954. The CPSU inspired the peasants: "Agronomic science and production practice have proven that corn has no equal crop in terms of yield and the number of fodder units obtained per hectare of sowing, the cost of its cultivation and the best wages."
As for the costs, the functionaries obviously got excited, but with wages, and, however, there have been changes. They paid for corn higher than for other crops, it was a good incentive. And the conditions of the All-Russian competition looked tempting. As a result of the harvest, the following were allocated: 100 premiums of 1000 rubles each, 500 - wrist watch"Victory" - for machine operators, combine operators, collective farmers. For pioneers - 200 awards, including 100 trips to the famous Artek camp. For youth complex brigades - 100 awards of 1000 rubles each. For Komsomol organizations - 60 prizes, including 10 GAZ-69 cars and 20 motorcycles with a sidecar.
In addition, the country's leadership pinned great hopes on the Komsomol and youth units. Corn was even called “Komsomol culture”, because elderly collective farmers could not understand why such laborious and capricious corn was needed when there were perennial grasses that had proven themselves for centuries. But student brigades were created at schools: in biology lessons, children studied the agricultural technology of corn, the features of its cultivation, and in spring and summer they had practice on training plots.

Eyes wide shut

Experiments on growing corn on Kostroma land began back in 1953. All experiments ended in much the same way. Praskovya Malinina, chairman of the 12th October collective farm in the Kostroma district, recalled this: “First, 1.41 hectares were sown for testing. They did not know either agricultural technology or the peculiarities of cultivating crops. The origin, variety and sowing qualities of the seeds were unknown to us.” Fertilizers were selected empirically, the number of seeds per hectare, too.
“Then we were skeptical about the new fodder crop, and therefore did not ensure the implementation of even the most elementary agronomic rules,” Malinina admitted. - The protection of crops from rooks was not properly ensured, so up to 30-40 percent of seedlings were destroyed. There was no proper care, we were late with the cleaning: the entire corn plantation was flooded by an unforeseen flood of the Volga River. However, the corn grew to everyone's surprise - wonderful. Friendly shoots, rapid growth of stems, weeds did not have time to drown them out. No one could pass by the crops without admiration. Corn immediately won sympathy and became a favorite crop. The harvest convinced that corn for silage in the conditions of the Kostroma region can produce very high yields of green mass.
Despite the optimism of the last phrases, culture in our region was extremely difficult. At Malinina, the first shoots were partially destroyed by rooks. In another farm, sowing in cold soil led to the fact that the seeds rotted and did not sprout. In the third, early frosts led to an almost complete loss of the crop. Everything, indeed, was carried out by trial and error. Science joined a little later. Even worse was the situation with the mechanization of work. Much was done by hand - they planted, loosened, weeded, treated with pesticides, mowed ...

In our northern latitudes

The Kostroma book publishing house then produced a lot of literature promoting the new culture. Most often it was the advanced experience of local farms. Collective farm chairman Molotov, Sharyinsky district, Rafail Krylov, for example, said that they began to deal with corn even before the party was indicated. It was sown in 1955 on an area of 25 hectares. But due to poor care, they received an extremely low yield. In 1956, mistakes were taken into account and they already received 80-100 centners of green mass per hectare, and in some brigades, where there was increased care and a sufficient amount of fertilizers, 360 centners each. The height of corn reached 2.5 m, the weight of one cob was 300-400 g.
Anna Dobrovolskaya, chairman of the Put Lenina collective farm in the Sharyinsky district, boasted that in the second year of working with corn they managed to get a green mass yield of 250 centners per hectare, and the milk yield among cows fed with corn silage increased by 300 kg. Boris Smirnov, the foreman of the Zvezda collective farm in the Kostroma region, shared his joy: after they began to feed the cattle with corn silage, the cattle went to the pasture in the spring well-fed, milk yields increased, - 434 liters of milk were received per cow more than before. The cattle liked the corn. It is indeed very sweet, and the cows eat it with great eagerness.
At the same time, each publication usually ended with a promise - to achieve next year harvest 500-600 centners per hectare. Party bodies demanded to increase the pace - they had to report to the capital. And the collective farmers had to obey. Those chairmen and agronomists who opposed the new culture were removed from their jobs. And corn was sown, and native crops were expelled from the fields.

Catch up and overtake

At the All-Russian Agricultural Exhibition in Moscow in those years, farms were presented that received corn yields of up to 1000 centners per hectare. The records of the Kostroma region are more modest, but we also had corn miracles. This was achieved mainly due to the enthusiasm of the collective farmers and the pressure of the leaders. At the same time, it was not about all the sown areas, but about individual plots of 1-15 hectares in size. In total, in 1957, 56 thousand hectares of land were sown under corn in the Kostroma region.
So, the collective farm "May 1" of the then Sudai district received 350 centners of green mass per hectare. "Soviet Russia" of the Krasnoselsky district, the educational farm "Karavaevo" - 400 centners per hectare. Kolkhoz im. Stalin, Sharyinsky district - 425 c. The Komsomol-youth unit of the “Rossiya” farm in the Kady district – 450 centners per hectare. Collective farm "Rodina" of the Nerekhtsky district - 462 centners per hectare. "12th October" of the Kostroma region - 479 centners per hectare. State farm "Luzhki" Nerekhtsky district - 510 centners per hectare. Farm "Rodina" Manturovsky district (in one of the brigades) - 500 centners per hectare. Collective farms them. Lenin in the Parfenevsky district, Pobeda, Leninsky put in the Kostroma district, Russia in the Kologrivsky district, the Semenovsky state farm in the Vokhomsky district, the Kostroma agricultural experimental station and the Oktyabrskaya seven-year school in the Buysky district - up to 600 centners of green mass per hectare. And on the collective farm "Pobeda" in the Sudislavsky district, they harvested an unimaginable crop - 850 centners per hectare. Separate brigades from other regions also received harvests of up to 900 centners per hectare.
Link collective farm "Spartak" Nerekhta district Valentina Puchkova (her link received 670 centners of green mass per hectare) appealed to the villagers: "To harvest more corn means to get more meat, milk, butter, to quickly catch up and overtake the "vaunted" America livestock products per capita.
And Praskovya Malinina, speaking at the Plenum of the Central Committee, gave her word - to bring to the XXII Congress of the CPSU an ear of wax ripe corn grown on Kostroma land. To do this, she went to the Odessa region to the famous maize grower Evgeny Blazhevsky. Gain experience and get hold of the fruitful seeds of "White tooth-shaped", "Kishinevskaya", "Silicon" and "Golden Empress". But “White Tooth-shaped”, which ripens in the south in 100 days, did not turn the tide in our region.

Kostroma is not Iowa

In general, as experts noted then (and a small proportion of criticism was still present in these articles), the cultivation of corn is beneficial only if a high yield (more than 200 centners per hectare) is obtained everywhere. And here in the Kostroma region, in many areas, the collection was 50-60 centners per hectare.
Corn needed warm, highly fertile, light, well-fertilized soil located on the southern slopes, timely sowing, in a short time and at a high agrotechnical level, careful care during growth, regular loosening and top dressing, and harvesting without losses by a silo combine. These are just some of the prerequisites. From all this, even a person who had never been to the countryside could conclude: given the then state of agriculture and the natural and climatic conditions of the Kostroma region, this was simply impossible.
Most farms in the region had extremely low yields, and some collective farms did not harvest anything at all. main reason, considered in the party offices - poor organization of labor, violation of the rules of agricultural technology, untimely sowing and harvesting. They also looked for reasons in the human factor.
Nikolai Kulikov, chairman of the Krasny Mayak collective farm in the Galich region, was convinced: “The point is not in the peculiarities of our soils and climate, but in people, ordinary collective farmers, machine operators, to whom we, the leaders, have not been able to impress on the importance of corn in raising our collective farms and state farms. We did not have, and do not now have, a corn grower beacon, which has already appeared in all regions and territories of the Soviet Union. We still have a lot of work to do on instilling faith in the "Queen of the Fields" among the collective farmers...
In Galich, at courses for link agronomists, peasants besieged: “You fit on your corn! Think more about cabbage and cucumbers!” In the Galich region, these cultures were traditionally excellent. “But corn will not work on our land,” said the Galicians. “But how does Manukovsky and Gitalov manage to do it in Transbaikalia?” leaders retorted. And they continued to bend the party line. As a result, through incredible efforts in this area, it was possible to obtain from 140 hectares to 358 centners of green mass.
From the fact that the party demanded, and the culture was going badly, postscripts began. On this occasion, Khrushchev noted at the Plenum of the Central Committee: “If most collective farms grew not 700-800 centners, but at least 250-300 centners of green mass per hectare of corn crops, then this would be enough to get 225-260 kg butter in terms of 1 hectare of crops.
Already after the corn epic, economists calculated that labor-intensive corn in the Non-Chernozem region provided 2-3 times more expensive feed than perennial grasses. And during the cold winter, not only in the northern zones, but also in central Russia, the yields were extremely low.

Instead of a resume

Khrushchev was the last romantic and revolutionary in our country in such a high position. As his daughter Rada said: father must be slowed down, the energy is stupid, he rearranges the furniture at home every day. Khrushchev also grew corn and chumiza in his dacha. He believed that new cultures would make a breakthrough in the economy, considered them almost a panacea. In 1962, in most of the Non-Black Earth Region and in the eastern regions, almost all corn died. 63rd - also did not bring real success. The revolution in agriculture (and, besides corn, a whole series of transformations took place in this area) obviously did not work out. In the spring of 1964, at the Plenum of the Central Committee, Khrushchev very critically assessed his policy. The environment took this as a moment of weakness and in the fall of this year, by means of a conspiracy, removed Nikita Sergeevich from power. And although the leadership of the country was carried out collectively, only Khrushchev was blamed for all the mistakes. One of these mistakes was, in the words of Vysotsky, the "Decree on abundance", which failed. Khrushchev then did not make excuses, thereby taking full responsibility for himself. He failed to jump over the financial abyss in two jumps, as Churchill once warned him about.

Why didn't corn grow in the Kostroma region?

Lev Filimonov, member of the scientific society for the study of flora and fauna of the Kostroma region, employee of the regional museum of nature:

“In the Kady district, corn was grown to milky-wax ripeness, but these were isolated cases. Of course, if you give up all your strength, then you can grow a good crop of corn in our zone. But is it necessary to do it? Khrushchev then took pictures of a lot of people: agronomists, chairmen of collective farms, ministers who defended clover and treated corn with distrust. It’s good that in the late 50s and early 60s they didn’t even put people in jail for it, as under Stalin. Corn is an annual, heat-loving crop, it needs to be sown every year, it is very laborious, seeds are needed. Another thing is perennial grasses, with which there is much less trouble. But in our country, corn was sown everywhere, right up to the Arkhangelsk region. Still, they would start growing it in the tundra! Specialists, and not only specialists, just people with common sense were surprised: how in the Kostroma region it is possible to engage in such a culture - a marvelous marvel. Yes, some plants grew tall, but looking for grain in them is the same as looking for apples in apple blossom. We have, after all, a zone of risky farming. And planting silage also makes no sense, we have less capricious and less labor-intensive crops for this.”

Sergey Borodiy, Dean of the Agribusiness Department of the Kostroma State Agricultural Academy, Doctor of Agricultural Sciences, Professor:

“Why didn’t corn grow in our region? Firstly, the varieties were Moldovan. And Moldova and Kostroma are very different in climate. Now, by the way, there are varieties suitable for our strip - the same "Pioneer". It ripens to milky-wax ripeness in our zone. But corn needs a lot of organic matter, and now farms do not work with these fertilizers. The second reason is expensive seeds. We ourselves could not get seeds on our collective farms, they did not ripen, we had to constantly buy hybrids, and this is expensive, the farms have no money. And thirdly, the corn stalk is very thick - up to 5 cm in diameter. This means that a special corn header is needed when harvesting. Now such a harvester for an imported combine costs 2 million rubles, not every farm can afford it.
But still, corn is slowly beginning to revive in our country. Not very intensive, because it requires expensive equipment (special corn planter, forage harvester with header). But here in the Vladimir region, in Petushki, on the mega-farm "Rozhdestvo", it is grown. And there all year round cows are fed corn haylage. Milk yield - under 8 thousand. And wonderful corn grows there! But we must take into account that although this is the Non-Black Earth Region, it is 300 km further south than ours. By the way, in the Kostroma region there are thoughts of cultivating corn on small areas. This year, as far as I know, they want to do this in the Krasnoselsky and Nerekhtsky districts. But it’s hard to say whether the plan will come true: corn is a big risk, and no one wants to take risks today. It's too expensive."

Great ascetic

Two years ago, in the Kuban, a monument to Khrushchev was erected in one of the local farms. On a column of white marble, which is crowned with a bust of the Soviet leader, the inscription: "To the great maize devotee Nikita Khrushchev." This is the only monument in honor of former first Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU. In the Kuban, Khrushchev's ideas live and win today: corn is one of the favorite crops here, it is grown not only in farms, but in almost every garden. After the overthrow of Khrushchev, corn became a semi-forbidden crop. The leaders of the Kuban struggled to get Moscow to give the go-ahead for its sowing. The initiator of the erection of the monument was the Association of Producers of Corn Seeds of Russia. As its chairman, Nikolai Zhukov, said at the opening of the pedestal: "We wanted to honor Khrushchev as a person, not as a leader." According to the sculptor, the composition lacks only one detail. The area around the monument must be planted not with flowers, but with corn - for clarity.

Lavra Khrushchev

Not so long ago, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov unexpectedly made a proposal: Russia needs to grow corn and soybeans in volumes that meet the country's full needs, and not buy genetically modified products in China for foreign currency. Luzhkov understands agriculture: at one time he headed Mosagroprom and was able to raise this industry to its due height. At the same time, the capital's mayor offers his own, one might say, "family" technology for growing corn. Luzhkov's brother, Sergei Mikhailovich, has a biocompost production workshop in the Kaluga region, from which it is proposed to make balls with a diameter of 4 cm. Corn seeds placed in them germinate quickly, thereby reducing the vegetative cycle. To sow 20 hectares of arable land with corn, one million such balls are needed. Yuri Luzhkov explains: “We have to sow hundreds of thousands of hectares. Thanks to my method, the area for growing corn and soybeans can be moved 300-400 km to the north. You can easily plant these crops and get decent harvests in the Kursk, Tambov, and Kaluga regions.” The scientists of the Timiryazev Academy have confirmed by experiments that such a task is feasible. Luzhkov is convinced: “The idea of Nikita Khrushchev, in fact, was absolutely correct. Another thing is that it was brought to naught, vulgarized by the ugly party system. The northern regional committees thoughtlessly planted corn, but it did not grow to grain. It was a mistake. But we will try to fix it."

Numbers on topic

The sown area of corn for grain was: in 1913 - 2.2 million hectares, in 1940 - 3.6 million hectares, in 1958 - 4.4 million hectares. In 1959, at the Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU, it was decided to increase the total sowing of corn (for both grain and green mass) to 20 million hectares (instead of the 13 million hectares envisaged by the 7-year plan). By 1962, the area under corn in the USSR reached 37 million hectares.
Last year, 3824 thousand tons of corn were grown in Russia on 1424 thousand hectares. Specific gravity maize in the structure of grain production in the country amounted to only 3.5 percent. In 1990, only 869 thousand hectares were allocated for it.

Anecdote on the topic

The Americans flew to the moon. We started looking at where to build what. The Statue of Liberty will stand there, the White House and the Capitol will be there, and then the Pentagon. Suddenly, a native inhabitant of the moon crawls out from somewhere. "Late, guys! A bald-headed man flew in here. He looked around and ordered: "Everything - under the corn!".

Corn - the queen of the fields

Until the early 1950s, corn was a fairly common crop in the Soviet Union. Rather, even a minor, a kind of Cinderella in the world of agricultural plants. Wheat or rye - yes, "bread is the head of everything", without it nowhere. And corn ... And suddenly Cinderella, the agricultural stepdaughter, became not even a princess, but immediately a queen ...

Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev had a dream - "to catch up and overtake America." According to the plans of the party and personally the Secretary General, by 1971 the USSR was to surpass the United States in terms of total production and per capita production. But agriculture was hopelessly dragging down all indicators. Despite the fact that more than half of the country's population lived in the village, agriculture produced no more than 15% of the gross national product. The emphasis was on the development of virgin lands in Kazakhstan and Western Siberia, the transformation of corn into the main agricultural crop and ahead of the United States in terms of the number of livestock. Even at the February-March Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU in 1954, Khrushchev pointed to corn as the main source of filling the lack of grain in the country and as a crop due to which "virgin meat" would be raised, that is, the number of livestock would be sharply increased. And in 1959, Nikita Sergeevich, while on a visit to the United States (the historic trip was the first ever visit of a Soviet leader to the United States), visited the state of Iowa on the farm of a simple American farmer. Luxurious fields of hybrid varieties of corn literally intoxicated the Soviet leader. An even greater impression was made by the plump, milky-sheen American cows eating corn silage with pleasure, each of which would have easily won the first prize at any Soviet agricultural exhibition. Nikita Sergeevich was smitten and decided to defeat the enemy with his own weapons. Returning home, Khrushchev, with incredible zeal, began to introduce corn into agriculture.

The propaganda machine was in full swing. Newspapers and magazines, radio and television, numerous posters on the streets, films and even cartoons praised the “queen of the fields” and her priceless properties. I even remembered the “glorious” pre-war years, when parents, voluntarily or under duress, called their children Revolts, Vladlens, Oktyabrins, Bebelins or Chelnaldins (this rebus stands for “Chelyuskins on an ice floe”). A new one was added to these masterpieces - Kukutsapol, she is also "corn - the queen of the fields." Two “corn-growers” appeared in the country at once - the An-2 aircraft, which was equipped with agricultural aircraft and which treated fields with pesticides and herbicides, including those sown with corn, and Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev, General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, nicknamed so for his love of corn .

The area sown with corn increased every year. If in 1955 18 million hectares were allocated for this crop, then in 1962 - 37 million, that is, twice as much. Each head of an agricultural enterprise, district or region had to report to the top and report on how many percent corn crops increased on his farm. But there was not enough equipment, fertilizers, people, and simply suitable arable land, and the collective farm chairman had a choice: either, in accordance with common sense, sow the fields with wheat or, for example, sugar beets, or give most of the land for corn. There were few who were ready to risk their position and take the first path. “They have withered themselves and are drying the corn,” this is how the Secretary General spoke of those who, in his opinion, did not pay enough attention to the “queen of the fields”. After that, the corresponding conclusions followed for the “withered” leaders.

Agricultural experiments, carried out at the will of one man, ended in a grand failure. The stake on virgin lands did not materialize, and the corn epic also failed. The climatic conditions of Belarus, the Baltic States, the Arkhangelsk and other northern regions (they say that Khrushchev even forced breeders to grow varieties of corn that could be sown in the polar regions) were clearly not suitable for the cultivation of corn. It was in propaganda cartoons that it only took a few drops of rain to fall - and miraculous plants up to the sky with huge ripe cobs grew out of the ground. The reality was fundamentally different from a beautiful cartoon picture. Corn refused to grow and produce crops where it was not supposed to grow.

Among other "successful" innovations of those years - attempts to crush personal subsidiary plots. The slogan "The main thing is public, not personal!" was again extracted from Stalin's times. City residents were forbidden to keep any livestock (which was quite common for residents of small towns). Then a wave of prohibitions reached the villagers. As soon as a collective farmer appeared on the market with products from his farmstead, he risked being recorded as a "speculator". If he sells his own, it means that he devotes a lot of time to his personal household and, therefore, does not work well on the collective farm.

All this led to a sharp decline in the production of meat and milk in the private sector (despite the fact that in the sector of the state production did not grow), the cultivation of vegetables and fruits decreased. There is a real threat of a food crisis in the country. Khrushchev, trying to save the situation, reorganized the Ministry of Agriculture, personally traveled to dozens of regions of the country, gave instructions on how to properly milk cows, plant corn and harvest bread. It is clear that the result of these trips was almost zero. In order to stimulate animal husbandry, the government increased the prices of meat, milk and butter. This led to an increase in openly anti-Soviet sentiments in society and to unrest in a number of cities, in particular in Novocherkassk, where in June 1962 a demonstration of workers from an electric locomotive plant was brutally suppressed - more than 20 people died. People carried the slogans “Meat, milk and wage increases!”, and they were fired at from machine guns…

The situation with bread was no better. Several lean years and "corn mania" led to the fact that interruptions arose not only with livestock products, but also with flour and bakery products. The famous scene from the beloved film “White Sun of the Desert”, when the customs officer Vereshchagin looks with disgust at a huge plate of black caviar and asks his wife for at least a small piece of bread, became quite real. In the early 60s, black and red caviar could be bought completely freely at reasonable prices, and for ordinary black bread one had to stand in a long queue. Flour was sorely lacking, and they began to add ground corn and peas to the bread, which is why the taste and color of this bread began to resemble green glue. White bread and flour products completely disappeared from bakery counters. It got to the point that products made from white flour could be obtained ... according to prescriptions issued by doctors to patients who needed special nutrition. There was a real threat of the introduction of rationing distribution of bread and flour. There was only one way out - to buy grain abroad ...

Can corn be blamed for all these troubles? Of course not. According to many experts, the reasonable introduction of corn into agriculture, as well as the development of virgin lands, could give a result, and a very good one. But it is a reasonable introduction, and not the capricious moods of "catch up and overtake." And corn is a necessary and useful plant. The main thing is not to make unreasonable experiments either with it, or with agriculture, or with the country. And then everything will be fine...

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The owner of the ice fields is the Polar Bear - the most common and generally recognized symbol of the North. Indeed, a close acquaintance with him makes a strong impression. First of all, let us remember: this is the largest among all modern predatory animals. Large males occasionally

From the book All About the Garden and the Garden. The Complete Modern Encyclopedia author Ganichkin Alexander Vladimirovich

Corn Sweet corn Among vegetable plants, sweet corn occupies a leading place in terms of nutritional properties. The presence in it of easily digestible forms of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals make it a valuable dietary product. Unlike others

From the author's book

Corn became one of the country's main crops thanks to Mr. Khrushchev, the former Soviet leader. At that time, the leading economic position in the world was maintained by America. The Soviet leader was looking for ways to catch up and overtake America. It was the American unprecedented prosperity that prompted Nikita Sergeevich to introduce corn into the country. And in 1955, the VLKSM came out to the Komsomol members and all Soviet youth with an appeal: “On a campaign to grow corn!”

Corn fibers are considered especially useful. They are used for diseases of the liver, urinary tract, prostatitis.

The media began to promote the myriad benefits of culture. The sown areas began to increase every year: in 1955, 18 million hectares were allocated for corn, and in 1962, 37 million hectares. The head of each agricultural enterprise had to report to higher authorities, the percentage of corn crops in his field increased. So American culture has become a real "Queen of the Fields." For many years, she occupied the minds of agricultural managers and ordinary Soviet citizens. Various hybrid varieties of corn began to be purchased abroad. In the USSR, sticks, cereals, bread, and besides this, sweets and sausages began to be produced from corn. All these consumer goods occupied the honorary shelves of stores.

However, agricultural experiments involving the "Queen of the Fields" ended in failure. Corn refused to grow where there were unsuitable climatic conditions. Basically, these are the Northern and Baltic territories of the country. Agricultural workers stopped sowing vast areas with crops. Of course, corn has not been able to replace other grains such as rye or wheat. However, corn sticks still occupy a place on the shelves in stores to this day.

Due to the content of vitamin E, corn has antioxidant properties, and therefore prolongs the youth of the body.

Corn is a non-waste cereal

Over time, a use was found for the stalk and other parts of corn. The middle of the stem began to be used to make tissue paper. The stem itself began to be used for the production of building and packaging materials. Furniture is stuffed with air wrappers of cobs, and even furfural is obtained from stalks. In a word, the amazing cereal deserved the title of "Queen of the Fields" for a reason.

Corn is one of the most popular cereals. It is considered a non-waste cereal, because all its parts: grains, fibers, stems, stalk, cob leaves are used in many industrial areas.

Corn is a highly cultivated plant that is not capable of running wild. The plant received its name "queen of the fields" quite deservedly. At one time, on the orders of the Soviet leader Khrushchev N.S. most popular crops in the country, including rye and wheat, have been replaced by corn.

Areas of application of the "Queen of the Fields"

Nature has given mankind an invaluable gift in the form of a unique cereal, in which cobs with grains, fibers, leaves and stems have useful properties. The areas of application of the "Queen of the Fields" include:

Food industry and cooking;
- paper industry;
- Pharmaceutical and medical field.

In cooking, corn grains are used in the preparation of a large number of first and second courses, as well as for the production of flour and butter. Corn grits and flour are the basis for many types of pastries, cereals and puddings, which are recommended for pregnant women and nursing mothers. Canned corn is used in the preparation of a variety of salads.

In the paper industry, tissue paper is produced from the middle of the stem. And the whole stem is used for the production of building and packaging materials. Corn cobs serve as a material for furfural, solvents, cardboard, environmentally friendly fuels, metal cleaners and even oxalic acid.

Medicinal properties of corn

The unique and waste-free cereal is distinguished by a number of medicinal and useful properties, among which are the following:

Improving the condition of the skin and vision;
- effective resolution of problems associated with digestion;
- an excellent prophylactic in the development of colon cancer, diabetes, obesity, atherosclerosis, as well as insomnia and depression;
- strengthening the nervous, immune and cardiovascular systems of the body;
- strengthening of teeth;
- elimination of various problems with the liver, bile and bladder(characterized by diuretic and choleretic actions);

Corn is a delicacy loved by many since childhood: it is boiled corn with salt, and sweet canned, and, in the end, popcorn at the cinema. In general, it is difficult to find someone who does not like bright yellow cobs at least in some form. By the way, now is the time to remember the taste of childhood, because the season of corn is coming, and we will tell you how to cook it as appetizing as possible!

In most parts of the world, corn is called "maize". The sonorous and slightly funny name "corn" came to us from Turkey.

All corn is yellow in color, takes a long time (or so it seems) to cook, is good with salt, and, while young, can be an excellent dietary product. But this is not all the characteristics of the plant. In fact, corn is not as simple as it seems.

Types of corn

dent corn. Yellowish grains of a slightly elongated shape, resembling a horse's tooth in appearance. This type commonly used for livestock feed, processing into flour, alcohol and cereals.
flint corn. Smooth round grains of yellow or white color. It is mainly used for the production of cereals, corn sticks and flakes.
starchy corn. One of the most ancient species. Smooth, matte, rounded, soft, mealy (who is more?) grain. Most often reddish in color. It is used in the starchy and alcohol industries.
waxy corn. In fact, it is a mutant of dent corn. The grains are smooth, hard with a matte surface, as if doused with wax. This species is most common in China.
popcorn. It is divided into rice and barley. When this type of grain is heated, it bursts and swells, in fact, this is how popcorn is made.
hulled corn. The grains of this species are covered with a film. This species has no industrial value, however, there are claims that this corn was once used in the religious rites of the Inca Empire.
sugar corn a. The most common are bright yellow cobs with slightly wrinkled grains. However, the color of this species can be quite varied. Contains a large amount of sugar, hence the name. This is just the kind of corn that we are used to eating.

By the way, by nature, corn is multi-colored, and yellow was obtained through selection.

How to choose delicious corn

First of all, look at appearance cobs. Dark yellow kernels and dry fibers are a clear sign that the corn is old. This means that even after prolonged cooking, the outside will remain solid, inside - boiled, and there will be no trace of sweetness.

It is worth giving preference to young cobs with pale yellow, maybe even whitish grains and bright green leaves. These cobs have slightly damp fibers. Also remember that you should not take peeled cobs - this will spoil the corn faster. Peel the cobs before cooking, otherwise the sugar will begin to turn into starch.

By the way, the number of rows of grains in each cob is even. You can count!

Useful properties of corn

Corn is a storehouse of vitamins. Among them is vitamin E, as well as vitamins of groups B, K, PP, D, C, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, copper and nickel. Moreover, it contains healthy fats and essential oils, acids and other substances, for example, with antioxidant properties.

Corn reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases, strokes, heart attacks, and diabetes. Helps maintain vision and improves the tone of the gallbladder.

100 grams of corn contains 365 calories, despite this, corn - dietary product because it reduces appetite.

Corn oil is rich in phosphatides, important for brain function, and is also useful in the prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis. It is believed that corn oil is much healthier than sunflower oil, with its use, overall health improves, sleep normalizes, and blood cholesterol levels decrease.

Dangerous properties of corn

Genetically modified corn, bred to eliminate insect pests, contains poison and is dangerous to health.

Corn is contraindicated in gastric and duodenal ulcers.

It is worth refraining from eating corn for people with increased blood clotting and thrombophlebitis. Corn can cause exacerbations.

This cereal reduces appetite, so it is contraindicated for people suffering from underweight. So it is better not to eat corn oil for people suffering from obesity.

Fresh Corn Recipes

Everyone knows that young corn is easy enough to put in cold water, bring to a boil and cook for another 15-20 minutes until cooked, then sprinkle with salt - and a delicious dinner is ready. But such a "dish" can quickly get bored, so we bring to your attention a few simple recipes.

Mexican grilled corn

You will need:

corn on the cob
A couple of limes
fresh cilantro
Butter
Pepper

Cooking:

Peel fresh corncobs and set them aside.
Melt a small amount of butter, mix with finely chopped cilantro, lime juice and lime zest.
Brush the corn on all sides with the resulting sauce. Place on a preheated grill and cook, turning the cobs, for 15-20 minutes. If you don't have a grill, simply wrap the cobs in foil and cook in an oven preheated to 180 degrees.
Salt, pepper and serve. If desired, sprinkle with grated cheese.

Vegetable salad with corn

You will need:

corn on the cob
Potatoes - 2 pcs.
Apple - 2 pcs.
Green onions - 60g.
lettuce leaves
Olive oil
Lemon
Sesame
Parsley
Pepper

Cooking:

Boil potatoes and cut them into thin slices.
Boil the corn and separate the kernels.
Peel the apples and cut into slices, like potatoes.
Tear lettuce leaves.
Prepare salad dressing. Chop parsley, mix with olive oil, lemon juice and zest, sesame seeds, pepper and salt.
Mix everything, pour over the dressing and serve.

According to the Indian method, corn is planted along with pumpkin, which protects the soil from weeds and does not allow excess moisture to evaporate, which helps to increase yields.

Fresh corn soup

You will need:

Corn cobs - 2 pcs.
Water - 2 tbsp.
Milk - 2 tbsp.
Cream - 2 tbsp.
onion head
Flour - 1 tbsp. l.
Butter
green onion
Pepper
Nutmeg

Cooking:

Boil the corn, cut off the kernels and grind in a blender.
Finely chop the onion and sauté over low heat with flour in butter.
Mix corn with onion, add grated nutmeg, salt, pepper. Pour in milk and cream. Boil.
Garnish with finely chopped green onions when serving.

Queen of the fields Folk. Express. About the infantry. - The queen of the fields went on the attack, - said Gorbunov. - Now the god of war will sing along with her. And as if to confirm his words, guns of various calibers hit from all sides(V. Kataev. Son of the regiment). Infantry is the oldest branch of the military, which originated in antiquity. And while they exist on earth military establishment it will never lose its meaning. No wonder she is called the "Queen of the Fields"(A. Polyansky. Queen of the fields).

Phraseological dictionary of Russian literary language. - M.: Astrel, AST. A. I. Fedorov. 2008 .

Synonyms:

See what the "Queen of the Fields" is in other dictionaries:

queen of the fields- infantry, corn Dictionary of Russian synonyms. queen of the fields n., number of synonyms: 2 corn (12) ne ... Synonym dictionary

Queen of the fields- Pub. Pathet. Corn. Mokienko, Nikitina 1998, 644 ...

queen- , s, f. ** Queen of the fields. pathet. Corn. ◘ Let's decide who to dress up as the queen of the fields [at the carnival in the pioneer camp]. RT, 09/01/96 ... Explanatory Dictionary of the Language of Soviet Deputies

QUEEN- Queen of the night. Don. The plant is an annual levkoy. SDG 2, 188. Save (save, save) the queen of heaven! Razg. 1. The expression of a warning, a warning about the undesirability, inadmissibility of something. FSRYA, 496; RKFS, 23. Queen of the fields. Pub. Path... ... Big Dictionary Russian sayings

QUEEN- The king's wife. V Ancient Russia(see Rus *) the wives of Russian tsars were the daughters of noble boyars (see boyar *). The first Russian tsarina was the first wife of Tsar Ivan the Terrible * Anastasia Zakharyina Yuryeva. The second Russian Tsar Fedor Ioannovich was married to Irina ... ... Linguistic Dictionary

queen- s; well. 1) to the king 1) Tsars / Catherine. Kings of Egypt. 2) the king's wife 1) The king and queen entered the throne room. 3) a) what About who or what excels where l., surpasses everyone and everything else, like. Tsars / ts of the ball, masquerade ... Dictionary of many expressions

queen- s; well. 1. to the King (1 sign). C. Ekaterina. C. Egyptian. 2. The king's wife (1 character). The king and queen entered the throne room. 3. what. About who or what excels somewhere, surpasses everyone and everything else like that. C. ball, masquerade. Mathematics c. Sciences. C.… … encyclopedic Dictionary

infantry- infantry, lower classes, tanned nape, motorized infantry, infantry, leather nape, queen of the fields Dictionary of Russian synonyms. infantry queen of the fields; infantry (neglect); infantry (outdated) Dictionary of synonyms of the Russian language. Practical guide. M.:… … Synonym dictionary

corn- golden grain, maize, amber grain, queen of fields, cinquantino, vegetable, liming, popcorn Dictionary of Russian synonyms. corn mais Dictionary of synonyms of the Russian language. Practical guide. M.: Russian language. Z. E. Alexandrova. 2011 ... Synonym dictionary

The history of corn in the USSR and in Russia- Corn species of annuals herbaceous plants cereal families. Corn is a crop of high productivity and versatile use. Corn grain contains 9 12% protein, 4 6% fat (up to 40% in the germ), 65 70% carbohydrates, in yellow grains ... ... Encyclopedia of newsmakers

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