Corn

[AlittleSalt]

Locally, there are huge fields of corn grown right down the road. I haven't gone out and measured how far apart they are planted commercially, but it looks like they are planted 12" apart in rows 12" apart, but they might be even closer planted.

I just emailed our county agriculture agent this:

"I'm adding a section to my garden. The soil has a high percentage of clay. I am wanting to plant corn to help break up the clay and to use the stalks to shred and add as an organic ingredient to our soil. We do not eat much corn, so taste and yield isn't important. There will be 4 rows at 60 feet long. I also want to companion plant black eyed peas with the corn. Wednesday or Thursday, I'll be buying corn seed locally at one of our feed stores.

What I'm wondering is how close can I plant the corn by spacing and row spacing? I was thinking 12 inches apart but thought it would be smart to ask you first." (End Email)

Have any of you planted corn for purposes as I explained above?

Growing corn and legumes together are two parts of the three sisters planting method. Squash (The other of the three sisters) is already growing beside where I'll be planting the corn and Black Eyed Peas (BEPs) Both corn and BEPs grow very well in this part of Texas. Corn is usually harvested in early to mid July. BEPs can grow right through the hottest parts of summer as long as you provide a little shade. I plan to leave the corn in ground even after it stops growing to provide that needed shade for the BEPs.

This idea comes from piecing information gathered over the past few years. Any info, thoughts, ideas, and comments are very welcome.

[Worth1]

Salt in my opinion if you dont eat corn then dont do it.
Corn depletes soil like no other plant.
The legumes aren't going to do anything for you either as the nitrogen will be used up making peas.
Even if you ate the corn the nutrients wouldn't be available to you unless you made homony out of it.
Through the process of which I can't spell.
There are a heck of a lot better ways to improve your soil.
Rye grass in the winter and tilled under or killed off before going to seed is one.
Carrots is another one that will grow in sorry soil and help break it up.
Worth

[AlittleSalt]

I am open to all ideas. I've read that turnips overwinter too.

The soil has a high percentage of red clay. It's not 100% clay though. It is also where the Johnson Grass has grown most. I'm doing my best to get it up by the root. Of course, I don't want to use chemicals like (Roundup) because I want to incorporate it in with the existing garden.

A picture or two can explain a lot more than I can type out. The first picture, I was trying show the difference in color and texture of the soil. At the lowest part of the first picture is the loam soil I moved in, and then it transitions into the clay ridge. The second picture is of newly tilled-at clay. In late Autumn, we will be adding around 6 inches of loam and organic materials. That why I was thinking corn might work for now.

[Cole_Robbie]

Yeah, corn and cotton are the two worst crops for soil.

Groundhog radish is a good cover crop for clay. The radishes break it up as they grow down into it, then after the plant dies, earthworms are attracted to the decaying radishes underground.

[AlittleSalt]

Here's the reply from our ag agent: Plant the corn seeds about 1 inch deep and 3 to 4 inches apart in the row. Space the rows 2.5 to 3 feet apart.

[joseph]

Corn only depletes the soil if you haul it away...

People are all the time asking me for my corn stalks. I'll sell them for a high price in acknowledgement of the organic matter that they contain, but I won't give them away, and I won't loan them out on condition that they be returned, because people think they are garbage and don't return them. To me, they are a high value fertilizer, and the fertility of next year's crop.

My motto is "Don't throw away your wealth". And corn stalks are one of the wealthiest crops I grow, so the stalks get tilled right back into the soil. Then the only thing I am taking out of the garden is the nutrients in the seeds.

[AlittleSalt]

Joseph, that's more of what I was thinking. Plant the corn to grow in the clay now. Then when adding the 6 inches of loam on top of the clay in late fall, I was going to add the shredded corn stalks to the new soil. The things I'm going to plant next spring won't have roots growing deep enough to get to the clay.

I should have explained that better when I started the thread.

[Tormato]

I've planted corn (Yukon Supreme) with as little as 7" x 7" spacing. Taller varieties get 9" x 9" spacing. I'm only expecting 1 ear per stalk, but sometimes get two. Wider spacing than the above produces many more stalks with 2 ears.

Gary

[joseph]

I often hear people moaning about clay soil, but out here in the desert it is my favorite type of soil to grow in -- because it holds onto the moisture and the nutrients and shares them readily with the plants.

[clkeiper]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

Locally, there are huge fields of corn grown right down the road. I haven't gone out and measured how far apart they are planted commercially, but it looks like they are planted 12" apart in rows 12" apart, but they might be even closer planted.

This is planted at this spacing for a combine to pick it. They (if they do it like here) either shred the stalks or bale the stalks for bedding. We would never plant this dense with a hand planter. We also shred it with a flail mower and til it back into the ground. We also have hauled the horse farm manure pile to out corn field and spread it on there for the humus. You can plant a cover crop on your area for the winter and plow it under in the spring or I have seen a farmer roll a crimper over the fiels and just knock it down and plant right through it. You would have a ground cover for your soil and plants, too. then in the Fall maybe you could reseed it again with another cover crop of different plants like the mangles or radishes or sugarbeets ( not sure what you grow specifically there, but you probably get the idea)... etc. instead of the grasses.

[feldon30]

If you are serious about growing corn in a home garden...

• Skip the "three sisters" approach. Yes, it made sense for American Indians with plentiful garden space but little access to metal or wooden supports for beans to climb. Today, we have limited garden space while metal or wooden supports for beans are plentiful.

• Plant corn in tight clusters. On a corn plant, the tassels (male part) are over a foot taller than the silks (female part). Normally in a corn field, the pollen is carried by the wind 10+ feet away to adjoining rows of corn. In a home garden, if you plant in sparse rows, you will get empty ears with no kernels. What I did last year was to plant circles of 12-16 seeds in an 18" circle. The plants end up being about 3" apart from each other. I was also fastidious about using scissors to cut off tassels and shake the pollen onto the developing silks.

• Fertilize heavily when plants are knee-high and again when ears are forming. Don't look at corn as a typical vegetable that needs equal parts of N-P-K or even lower N. Corn is a GRASS and needs tremendous amounts of nitrogen fertilizer to produce well. I side dressed my plants twice with 46-0-0 and got great ears.

• Pick a variety with tight husks and/or use mineral oil and/or BT to keep earworms at bay. Corn earworm is a real problem and you have to keep them from entering the tops of the ears either through variety selection or various physical barriers.

I'm a huge fan of white corn. I did lots of research and found Ambrosia which is a 1990's hybrid that is reminiscent of Silver Queen but holds its sugar content for 3-4 days which is important to me. I got an ear per plant (most 6" or more, a few were as long as 9") and were absolutely delicious. I know Silver Queen is popular but, like most first generation sweet corn, shouldn't be picked until the pot of water is boiling. I also tried Bodacious and didn't find it nearly as good or productive.

[AlittleSalt]

Tomorrow, Wednesday, I am going to look at what corn seed is available at several local feed and seed stores (Ag businesses). I'm hoping to find some kind of ornamental corn seed available locally, but I really doubt I'll find it.

[Gerardo]

Worth1: nixtamalization, vocalize it to get those Nahuatl sounds, since we use em already every time we say tomato.
feldon30: thanks for those 4 great corn tips. I have Ambrosia and Honey Select seeds in hand and was trying to figure out my planting configuration. Have a patch of soil that was amended with chicken Manure/seaweed/alfalfa and has been resting for 6+ mos. Gonna try the circles. Any thoughts on Honey Select?

[Cole_Robbie]

Two years ago, I bought a $200 sack of sweet corn seed. It was supposed to have the GMO-induced gene to produce BT and poison the worms that ate it. I finally grew a patch. It was great corn, very sweet, and also extremely wormy.

The seed company finally told everyone, "oh by the way the corn we were selling only works for European worms, not American. But if you buy our new stuff that just came out, at an even higher price, we promise it will work this time."

Most market gardeners lose money trying to grow sweet corn, just like I did. The raccoons ended up eating most of it.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by feldon30

If you are serious about growing corn in a home garden...

• Skip the "three sisters" approach. Yes, it made sense for American Indians with plentiful garden space but little access to metal or wooden supports for beans to climb. Today, we have limited garden space while metal or wooden supports for beans are plentiful.

• Plant corn in tight clusters. On a corn plant, the tassels (male part) are over a foot taller than the silks (female part). Normally in a corn field, the pollen is carried by the wind 10+ feet away to adjoining rows of corn. In a home garden, if you plant in sparse rows, you will get empty ears with no kernels. What I did last year was to plant circles of 12-16 seeds in an 18" circle. The plants end up being about 3" apart from each other. I was also fastidious about using scissors to cut off tassels and shake the pollen onto the developing silks.

• Fertilize heavily when plants are knee-high and again when ears are forming. Don't look at corn as a typical vegetable that needs equal parts of N-P-K or even lower N. Corn is a GRASS and needs tremendous amounts of nitrogen fertilizer to produce well. I side dressed my plants twice with 46-0-0 and got great ears.

• Pick a variety with tight husks and/or use mineral oil and/or BT to keep earworms at bay. Corn earworm is a real problem and you have to keep them from entering the tops of the ears either through variety selection or various physical barriers.

Feldon
You new garden looks very nice.
Worth


I'm a huge fan of white corn. I did lots of research and found Ambrosia which is a 1990's hybrid that is reminiscent of Silver Queen but holds its sugar content for 3-4 days which is important to me. I got an ear per plant (most 6" or more, a few were as long as 9") and were absolutely delicious. I know Silver Queen is popular but, like most first generation sweet corn, shouldn't be picked until the pot of water is boiling. I also tried Bodacious and didn't find it nearly as good or productive.