Maize was first domesticated by the indigenous people of the Tehuacan Valley of Mexico. Maize has become an important food source throughout the world. It is a hardy plant able to flourish in diverse climates. The leafy stalk produces cobs or ears of maize containing the seeds or kernels. The Mesoamericans used a planting system called the “three sisters,” a technique of planting maize, squash, and legumes into one field, a beneficial technique known as “companion planting.”
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Spain divided its claims and conquests in the Americas into various administrative entities. The Viceroyalty of New Spain was a territory and predecessor to the current state of Mexico, formed when independence from Spain was achieved in 1821. The viceroyalty was founded in 1535 and included Spanish territory in North America and surprisingly, the Philippines. New Spain did not serve as a Spanish colony; it had the legal status of an independent kingdom under Spanish control.
