Is your Sweet Corn Knee High Yet?

Our sweet corn is about 5' at least the first we planted in our little crop garden. We are planning to be around throughout August this year. Last year we were away and got very little sweet corn by the time we got back. Ours is getting small ears and should be start coming in another month.

My first planting is about a foot high, 2nd planting is about 3 inches. I grow a smallish variety called Early Sunglow, it does well in a short season area and germinates well in cool soil. I need to get the 3rd planting in now, it may not have time to mature but there is always a chance.

No, I didn't sow any this year but they would only be about the same size as Mary's right now anyway :( Last year they didn't get away well until mid July early August, they stopped at 7ft. Don't know the variety other than they were one of the blue corns.

Have to ask DH the variety and he just left for a meeting. Two years ago the corn and veggies were just looking great and he accidentally sprayed with weed killer - need I say more LOL!

My corn is knee high to the cat! I got it in so late and it stayed cold so long that it's getting a slow start, and now it's extremely hot already. Maybe it will grow now.

LOL Joan hope it's a BIG cat!

Mine's 47 inches high. It was planted some time after June 1 by a squirrel. (Field corn -- yucky.) I've been measuring since the perennial bed it's growing in is being treated with a growth hormone. So far, no sign of corn. Just leaves. With my luck, it'll produce more squirrels. :)

I have a recipe posted somewhere for cooking those squirrels into potpie if that's all you wind up with LOL! I think you will have much better luck!

Hmmm..my sweet corn in the No Work Garden is about 5 ft high and just now tasseling! Can't wait! Me and DD also put in two rows of "corn sets" (I started them in flats) just before we went to the Roundup...they are about 18 inches tall, and in desperate need of rain! As for squirrels? BAM! They usually get more corn that we do around here so I don't feel bad thinning them out in the winter months for that glorious pot pie you mentioned haighr!

Oh goodie, somebody else loves that potpie!!! I've had a hard time trying to convince a few on here that it really does taste just like chicken potpie!

HAH!...Well, sorta! I haven't seen your recipe yet tho. Last ones I cooked I parboiled a bit, then marinated over nite, then battered and fried them in onions and olive oil! So Tasty!!! And tender!!!

That's sorta what we do. Boil in salt water for a long time and then we marinate batter and fry like chicken wings.
Same for the potpie boil till meat falls off the bone. We just don't get many around here anymore what with all the kitties LOL!

Squirrel huh? The ground squirrels around here don't look like there's enough meat on em to bother with. Feed em to the dogs maybe.

Dad and I harvested his corn Tuesday. 42 ears of Stowells evergreen. It's a white sweet corn that you can supposedly harvest the whole stalk, hang, and it will "keep" for a month. We're gonna try it with a few stalks of the fall crop.

Stowells evergreen? That sounds like an old variety. Would like to try it sometime. Is that a long-maturing variety? Early? Mid-season? I'd like to hear how the hanging/storage of it goes, and whether it retains its sugar.

I'd like to hear how the hanging/storage of it goes, and whether it retains its sugar. >>

Yeah....LOL....Us too! I'll report in mid winter how it does. We'll try that with some of this planting.

I know nothing of age. The seed was originally purchased at least 5 years ago from Seeds of Change. Before they started selling food stuff anyway.

I don't know how to judge time for corn either. It was transplanted to the garden 4/4 there were ears ready 7/4 (just a couple) we harvested the rest 7/9. There are smaller ears that didn't pollinate well left on the plants for seed. So 90 - 100 days for sweet corn. is that midseason or early?

Hopefully this batch will do excellent. We want HUGE amounts of creamed corn and Goulash. Maybe even a little tomato corn salsa. I haven't tried canning that yet

If there is no possibility of crossing (have to see what the neighbors are doing) I'll have seed for you. Remind me in winter after I report on the "hanging storage" LOL

Chris

This message was edited Thursday, Jul 11th 11:16 PM

dsrtgdn - each stalk produces two ears one matures and the other remains a stub - that's how sweet corn goes. You only get the one good ear on each.

Ankle high on Monday, knee high by Wednesday, thigh high by Friday and chest high by Sunday...well, it grows ALMOST that fast, lolol. We got ours in a little (lot) late, so I'm hoping for some sweet corn in about three more weeks. Unless the racoons beat me to it again.

From corn country! Had our first meal Sunday night, yummy--
Corn grower here has very large acreage. We get it wholesale and sell at our farm market. They have trucks on street corners of 3 large towns. Fresh corn from now until frost; (about Sept 20th). Lots of farmers raise corn here that goes to canneries for freezing & canning. All your favorite brands are canned here in southern Minnesota. Enjoy that corn!

Well now ours is about 6' at least the first planted. We are getting some nice ears and should be picking by the beginning of August.

But, but.....there is corn on the stubs??? Are they mutants?

I'm just kidding....are you saying that you get one decent nice full ear and anything else is useless or that there wont be corn on those ears at all? I'm asking cause, several have even up to 3 MORE ears still there. Some of those are small but definitely filling out. Any clues?

chris

No clue, never heard of more than two. Did you plant sweet corn? In our planting experience, only the first big ear is fully developed the second can go to the birds or deer.
Candee

dsrtgdn, I've never experienced the "stub" syndrome that haighr mentioned. I've often gotten two full ears per stalk, and sometimes three. Perhaps it's the type of corn haighr is growing, or the type I'm growing. (My favorite sweet corn is called Kandy Korn and have grown it nearly 10 yrs.)
I do know that if your corn is planted too closely together that the ears may not receive proper pollination due to the leaf growth being 'in the way'. (I like to grow some very small intensive patches sometimes to teach backyard growers that they don't need lots of room in their gardens in able to grow corn. When the silks begin to show I pull pieces of the tassels off and dust the silks by hand if I'm concerned about such closeness in planting.) However, in my usual gardening habits I just space the plants in the usual manner and have excellent results.

That's what we have horseshoe a small intensive patch. It has always worked well for us. I'll have to post a pic.

I'm so glad to hear that! For so many years people would tell me they didn't have room to grow corn, so I just had to persuade them!
My first small patch (and also my most recent)is planted with staggered mounds, 4 or 5 stalks/mound. (I previously put some fish heads/guts under them sometime before planting tho.) Right now I have a patch like this in the No Work Garden area.
Would like to see your pic haighr!!

No problem horseshoe. You'd be amazed at the size and there are rows of corn, bountiful tomato plants, potatoes and green peppers. I'll take a shot when I get home and get the measurements for you (if it's not raining, which I hope it is!)

I've ever only gotten one edible ear to a stalk too, then the little one that doesn't develop. Maybe it's just us in the northern part of the country that have this happen. Growing season's not long enough for the other one to develop maybe?

By the way Carmen, my corn is now over the cat's head and knee high on me. It got hot and I've kept it watered and it's growing fast, finally. I have more hopes for it now.

If you can find it, an excellant variety is called "Radiance". About 85 days, large ears, supersweet variety. It also is aleast favorite of racoons. If there are other kinds around they will go there before the Radiance. Deer love it though. This corn will have two ears most of the time. Takes high fertility to develop the second ear. (Around 100 # of actual N per acre.) Good luck to JoanJ in ND. We grew up in Brainerd Lakes Area of MN. Lots of corn never matured north of there. Corn for dinner here today!
Bernie

Thanks Bernie. I've made myself a note to look in my seed catalogs and see if anyone carried Radiance.

Candy and Shoe, thanks for the input. It may very well be soil fertility AND being in the south with PLENTY of heat for production.

Stowells evergreen is a white sweet corn.

Shoe we grew outs intensively in a small to medium patch. Say 20X20'. It may have served us better to space closer to a foot than 8" like we did. Thanks

Chris

As your corn nears harvest, be sure to add your photos and comments to the Plants Database.

We've recently added ~350 varieties of corn (OP and hybrid, sweet, popcorn, dent, flour, etc.) If you don't see your crop in there, you can add it yourself, or send me an email and I'll add it for you.

Your unbiased recommendations (or cautionary notes) will be tremendously helpful for gardeners in succeeding years!

Ahh, finally a home for the pictures of my pink popcorn. :)

http://plantsdatabase.com/go/49723/

dave

Cool! Will check it out!