Thread: Fake Corn Stalks

Tweet

I've been watching these huge plants growing along the side of the road near my house all summer. Some are over 8 feet tall! They strangely resemble corn stalks (to me), but there is no "fruit" on it, and the leaves are a bit narrower.

I stopped over the weekend and cut a bunch down and I plan to dry them out and use them as artificial corn stalks.

I'll update with pics when they dry out and show what they look like.

Are there any botanists out there that can identify these plants?

Hi,
Im not a botanist, but it looks like what we call "erosion cane". It was planted on farmland borders to help prevent erosion, but it went wild. It grows everywhere here in this part of west texas. I have used it for everything from corn stalk stacks to jungle huts. Its a really good natural prop material.

Erosion cane? Wow, that's a new one to me. Very cool though, and thanks for the input. So it does dry out nice and look like an old corn stalk? Great! The really good news is that there seems to be a life time supply available for me........

How close are you to the fires? And when was the last time you guys had any rain? I heard it's real bad out there.

Originally Posted by SpringChicken

I've been watching these huge plants growing along the side of the road near my house all summer. Some are over 8 feet tall! They strangely resemble corn stalks (to me), but there is no "fruit" on it, and the leaves are a bit narrower.

I stopped over the weekend and cut a bunch down and I plan to dry them out and use them as artificial corn stalks.

I'll update with pics when they dry out and show what they look like.

Are there any botanists out there that can identify these plants?

Do they get any tufts at the top? (maybe later in the year?)

Not that I've ever noticed. What are you thinking, wild corn?

No, I was thinking Phragmites. A reed grass that is quite a problem through much of the country.

Without the tufts, I'd say some kind of bamboo.

You made me go out and look at it again after you suggested it might be bamboo. I've never heard of Phragmite, sounds scarier though. Here's another pic. It cut real easily with standard hand cutters, not difficult like with my past experiences with bamboo. I guess there are different types right?

Shocking! I tied these in bundles 3 days ago, stood them up on the side of the house, in the afternoon sun. I was shocked that they already dried up to look exactly like corn stalks. Awesome!

Looks like bamboo to me.

it looks like cane reeds a type of bamboo, i have some growing behind my shed. Its also used to make cane fishing poles

No, I know that kind of bamboo cane you are talking about 077, this stuff isn't that rigid. I clipped it off with my hand shears like it was nothing. It looks and feels like some sort of grass........only on steroids. Which I think is what bamboo is anyway, a big grass. Either way, I'm glad I found my fake corn and I will make maximum use of this free resource.