Chapter 432: Wait for the Corn to Completely Ripen
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Although it was still a little hot, no one cared about that now. The three of them blew on the corn while eating. Before they knew it, there were only three bare corn cobs left in their hands. The three of them held the corn cobs in their hands and could not help but laugh at the same time. It was very strange. They had eaten a lot of delicious food before, but now they actually felt that ordinary corn could be so delicious thing. Fortunately, there were no outsiders around. Otherwise, they would definitely think that the three of them had been hungry for a long time.
Du Yue took out a wet towel and wiped her mouth. “It’s obvious that the taste of this corn is much better than the previous varieties. 1 just don’t know what it will taste like when it matures completely in a few days. I wonder if it can be ground into cornmeal.”
When Xia Ju heard this, she looked at Du Yue with a puzzled expression. “Does it matter? Why can’t it be ground into flour?”
“There are many types of corn.”
Du Yue explained, “Some types of corn are used to cook and eat. Some can be used to extract oil. Some can be ground into corn flour. After processing, they can be made into other foods.” Du Yue’s description was clear and logical as if she understood it very well. In fact, she had only studied a few books before.
Even after hearing Du Yue’s explanation, Xia Ju was still a little confused, but she did not continue to be conflicted. She only asked, “Then when will it be considered fully mature? 1 think it’s already very delicious when cooked and eaten now.”
Du Yue also felt that the taste of the tender corn was very good now. “Why don’t we pick half of it and put it in the s.p.a.ce? We can cook it later. Let the remaining half continue to grow and we’ll see what it’ll look like when it matures completely.”
As soon as Du Yue finished speaking, Xia Ju nodded and stood up to walk toward the logistics boxes. “Sure, I’ll go pick them now!”
Du Yue and He Xing also stood up and helped Xia Ju pick the corn. This variety of corn was obviously much better than ordinary corn. Not only did it grow very quickly, but the fruits on each stalk were also twice as many as ordinary varieties. Du Yue glanced around and found that each stalk of corn could bear three to four ears of corn, while ordinary varieties could only bear one to two ears of corn.
The three of them had gone to the room on the first floor to take a look. The corn that had not been improved with the nutrient solution might have been affected by the current environment and conditions, so it did not grow as well as the ordinary varieties. Most of the corn stalks only had two ears. When they bought the seeds previously, the staff had specially reminded them that if there were two ears on the corn stalk, it was best to break one off. Otherwise, both ears would not grow well. Not only would the corn kernels be scarce, but there might also be deflated corn kernels. However, looking at the corn in the living room, not only could three or four corn cobs grow from a corn stalk, but each corn cob was very full and the corn cobs were also very thick. Du Yue had made a comparison. A stick of corn was even longer than her forearm.
After picking half of the corn, Du Yue looked at the rest. “I wonder if these can be used as seeds after they mature. If they can be used as seeds, what will they become without the nutrient solution?”
Xia Ju pursed her lips and thought for a moment before saying, “Now that you mention it, I’m also very curious. After the corn is ripe, let’s use it as seeds to try!”
Du Yue also thought so. The two of them looked at each other and smiled.
He Xing, who was standing at the side, looked at the two of them with faint helplessness in his eyes. Looking at the two of them, could it be that they were planning to continue farming in the future? Reality proved that his guess was right. From that day on, Du Yue paid the most attention to the growth of the corn in the living room every day. After their careful care, the remaining corn was fully ripe in less than a week. The three of them plucked the corn together, and in less than half an hour, all the corn stalks were bald.
Du Yue roughly estimated that they had harvested about 200 ears of corn this time. This was only half the production of the living room, and the three of them were very satisfied. If they wanted to ground the corn, it had to be peeled first and then dried. However, now that they could not see the sun, the corn could not be dried. It could only be placed in a well-vented place to dry. In the end, it did not take more than a few days for all the corn to dry.
Before the apocalypse, Du Yue had never thought that she would farm in the future, so she did not buy any tools related to agriculture. Now, it was a problem to ground these 200 ears of corn..