North Carolina ranks 15th in U.S. field corn production producing 1 percent of the total U.S. field corn crop. Corn is grown throughout North Carolina, including the mountain counties. Major acreage of grain corn is grown in the coastal plain and tidewater regions with some grain produced in the piedmont. Most silage corn acreage is in the piedmont and is associated with livestock production (e.g., dairy).

The vast majority of corn is grown under non-irrigated conditions (rain-fed). Corn is grown on a wide variety of soil types from loamy sands to clays to organic soils. Conventional, strip-tillage, and no-tillage cultures are all widely practiced. Recently, there has been a shift to conservation tillage (no-till, strip-till, minimum-till), and this trend continues today. Typically, corn grown in the coastal plain is rotated, whereas it usually is not in the piedmont or mountains. Field corn is characterized by early inputs of fertilizer, herbicide, and insecticide followed by little attention until harvest. Field corn culture, including harvest and postharvest handling, is totally mechanized.