Some basics on growing corn
QCan I grow corn in my backyard garden, or is it more trouble than it’s worth?
AGrowing corn in a home garden can be an adventure, to say the least. I can give you some standard advice on growing corn, but I’ll also share some stories of our own experience for your amusement.
You’ll need to decide what kind of corn to grow. For fresh eating, there are quite a few options to choose from. There are sweet and super-sweet varieties in an assortment of colors as well as popcorn or ornamental corn. So many choices, and you can only grow one at a time.
For most vegetables and fruit, cross-pollination doesn’t affect the edible portion of the plant because we don’t generally eat the seeds. When we eat corn, we’re eating the seeds, so cross-pollination makes a difference. If you want to plant more than one type of corn, plant one variety early in the season and the second variety late enough to avoid the possibility of cross-pollination, which can result in starchy sweet corn and gummy popcorn.
Corn is pollinated by wind, rather than insects, so it needs to be planted in blocks rather than rows.
Plant as many as possible (the more, the merrier) to maximize pollination. Inadequate pollination will result in ears with shriveled or absent kernels.
Soaking seeds overnight in water will result in quicker germination but is not necessary. Plant 8 inches apart in fertile soil and, once stalks emerge, treat regularly with a high-nitrogen fertilizer. Corn needs regular heavy watering, so if you’re under watering restrictions you will want to take this into consideration.
Corn, like most edible plants, is subject to pest damage. Earworms, in my opinion, are probably the worst pest. Imagine harvesting your corn and peeling back the husk only to find a bunch of nasty worms feasting on the kernels. I’ve been told they make good fishing bait, so if you garden and fish you can get some revenge on the earworms. Dripping mineral oil, about 20 drops per ear, into the ear tip (do this three-seven days after the silks appear) can control earworms safely.
Our own experience in growing corn was more entertaining than productive. We had a little patch in our backyard and everything seemed to be going well. We didn’t have any insect pest problems and the stalks had grown to an impressive 7 feet. The ears were developing nicely and looked like they had adequate pollination. Things
Growing corn at home can be an adventure. First off, you can’t cultivate more than one type at the same time.
were looking good!
One night at about 11 p.m., my daughter (who was 13 at the time) came into my room and said, “Mom, I hear something in the backyard.”
Being the coward that I am, I stayed upstairs, grabbed our big flashlight
and aimed it toward the garden. To my (not complete) surprise, seven little masked faces looked up at me. That was the end of our adventure in growing corn.