The removal of the tomatoes from the greenhouse benches gives us room to get the first planting of sweetcorn (Flagler) started. We put 5 seeds to a pot and 32 pots make a row. Once those are big enough and the weather warm enough they will get set out in to a row and another planting will be started. We try to have 2 weeks between plantings to extend the season. Last year we brought ~ 230 ears of corn to the table. #gardening #allotment #zone6b #NewEngland #BeetBear #Today #sweetcorn
@richrollgardener
Wow, that's impressive!
I learned a hard lesson last year when hardly any cobs were filled with corn kernels. For this year, I know that planting them in one row isn't the right way!
You seem to have some experience with growing corn, though!
@Engelsbaeckerei Thanks! Multiple stalks in each hill helps with pollination. Here's a picture from last June showing two of the three rows that I plant. You will see multiple stalks in each "hill". They support each other and pollination is good.
@richrollgardener May I ask why you hill them? @Engelsbaeckerei I too have troubles growing corn, even through in plant it in blocks. But I think my site is too windy and my soil still too poor. So the corn does poorly, too. I'm not giving up though.
@levampyre@Engelsbaeckerei As they grow, soil is pulled up around them sort of like you do with potatoes. This acts as support and is a form of weed and pest control. After the plants are about 18 inches high, I no longer hill up additional soil.😀
@richrollgardener Hm, never heard of that. Potatoes grow below ground and their tubers need to be kept away from light to not develop toxic solanin. Hence, the hilling. But corn grows above ground and doesn't mind the open nuclear fusion in the sky at all. But yeah, giving the plants more grip and soil to root into might be worth a try. Firstly, I think, I have to improve my soil. Corn is a heavy feeder. And my sandy acidic soil is not helpful in that respect. @Engelsbaeckerei
@levampyre@Engelsbaeckerei
I was never really that successful with sweetcorn in the past - until I followed @richrollgardener 's advice last year.
A slight difference is that I start the corn in module trays with 144 cells. If a seed fails to germinate, it's not a problem, as I plant 5-6 plants from the tray in a group.
Thanks, Richard, for sharing your knowledge!
edit: typo
@levampyre
It's a #NoDig#garden made with compost from the local compost works of the council.
That had originally a pH of 5-5,5. After some time it came up to 7.0.
That's pretty constant now even with the annual application of 3-5cm (1-2") of fresh compost in winter.
@levampyre@feinschmeckergarten@Engelsbaeckerei I try to maintain a pH of about 6.0 for my corn. If it drops below that, I apply pelletized lime (usually in the autumn). I never grow the corn in the same spot more than two years in a row and at the end of the season, the entire plant is removed, including the roots, and shredded for compost. Here are a couple of pictures of last year's efforts. 😀
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