June corn starts

I'm fixing to plant my corn on Saturday morning. We had rain all through March and a good bit in April. Waited all May for things to dry out some. Heck, it even rained about a week ago. Everything in my garden is about a month late from this year's wacky weather.

I see some neighbors corn is only about 8-10 inches high, so I don't think they got started too long ago, we're all in the same weather boat! Is it too late to start my corn now? Is there anything special I should do for a June started corn patch?

mimitho,

I plan to start two more plantings here...have six up from 2 inches to earing up. Corn planted much after the first of July corn doesn't ear well here.

Later plantings tend to get earworms around here. I doubt if you have trouble with western corn root worm beetles, southern corn root worm beetles, or northern root worm beetles out there.

Plant a short season corn, there are some good ones that mature in 65-75 days. Corn is wind polinated (helped a bit by the bees who love those tassles and knock the pollen loose, so plant in blocks instead of 1 long row. I plant my first corn about June 1, second about mid June, last about July 1. Even the last planted usually matures before we get a frost, and I always think it is worth trying. We get a lot of 80-95 degree days here but our nights cool off (great for sleeping but it slows the corn down).

Thanks for the advice. The shortest season I've got is Seneca Horizon Hybrid at 70-80 days. Is it okay to plant my Bonus baby corn nearby? They are both normal sugars.

Corn won't be going in until Wednesday night. Took me too long to prep the bed on Saturday, I was pooped tilling the adobe and prepping the mounds.

I will need to prepare for corn earworm problems. What are some good ways to deal with those nasties?

I don't know about planting the 2 kinds close together. If they tassel at the same time they might hybridize. You can presoak your corn seed overnite in water to hurry germination a bit. My corn gets planted in shallow depressions, I haven't used mounds. Here's what I do. I rake a strip as wide as the garden rake to remove small clods, rocks, sticks, and old garden residue that is always in the soil. Then I draw an oval about the size of a large watermellon with the edge of the hoe, and add bone meal, mix it in with the soil, and plant 6 seeds around the edges of the oval. When they are up about 3 inches tall, I hoe soil up around them from inside the oval and outside. They are better supported against the wind that way, and it leaves a depression that gets filled with compost and old horse manure. Every time the garden gets water it runs down through that ,carrying good stuff to the roots and also serves as a mulch to keep the oval from drying out, at least on the inside. It sounds easier than making mounds to plant in, and this also makes a basin you can fill with water.

I haven't had much trouble with corn earworms, but I hear that you can apply some mineral oil to the ends of the ears, or you can use old pantyhose pieces to make a cap and hold it on with a rubber band. Be sure to wait until the silk has started to dry, polination would be complete at that point.