Sweet Corn ( photo / image / picture from KK Ng's Garden ) Yesterday I planted sweetcorn and as I was reading the instructions I was wandering whether I should follow it. Planting instructions. ( photo / image / picture from KK Ng's Garden ) The instruction said to allow two plants to grow in the same spot for better support and pollination. I was just wandering whether it is a good idea to follow it or not. I am still a newbie to planting corn.
Oh well, it may be a special corn. My parents plant corn each year. But it's mainly for animals (we still eat some when "green") As I know, we always leave just one seedling. When there's two, it may happen that the corn doesn't develop as big. BUT... follow the instructions... I am sure they know WHY!
Hi KK--I have never grown this type of sweetcorn, but I can tell you that I never plant two plants in the same hole, for support, pollination or any other reason. If the plants need support, plant them in a square, this also improves pollination chances. Also, I like corn so much that I would see the extra seed in the hole as a form of wasting. I have little space so I have to make the best of it. I want to have the largest and strongest plants that I can get from the few seeds that I buy. I suspect that two plants in one planting hole would create a situation where the two plants will be in direct competition for the minerals and water that the plants need. This plant needs to eat a lot and it needs quite a bit of water, sharing the food and water available with a neighbour that has the same high needs as itself, sort of stresses each plant, I feel. So KK--my opinion is to not follow these tips on the packet, but I have some experience with growing corn. If you feel unsure you can simply follow the tips and see how it goes. There are other corn growers on here and they may well different ideas. Good luck with your corn experiment this year, mate. Addendum: I do not plant my seeds in the ground outside, I plant them in root trainers and first let them develop some leaves, and more importantly, an excellent root system. This way I do not have to thin out if two seeds come up in the same hole. I plant one corn seed per cell and I use the ones that germinate and develop to planting-out size. There is discussion if this is a good thing to do because it is thought that the less root disturbance the better with corn seedlings, but I do it this way every year and have never had failures....only rat damage. :twisted: Gurrrrrr.
Hi, the 'bantam' corn is popular for home gardens here and putting 2 seeds in one hole is common practice, I sometimes plant beans or cucumbers at the base so they can grow together and the vines are supported by the corn plants. I think the corn for animals is called maize. Good luck with it, good corn plants should produce about 3 or 4 cobs to each plant, well thats the average that I get here.
I plant corn one kernel every 6", in rows 1' apart, and the whole planting is in a block with an aisle down the middle for access. I agree with those who think two per hole is a waste of seed, and likely to cause neither plant to get the full benefit of the fertilizer or water. Remember, the seed company is selling seed, so the more seed you plant the happier they are!
My opinion is "just incase there is poor germination" that you need to plant two per hole. After it is germinated then it needs to be thinned to 6" apart for growing. The space needed is to develop the ear and it can't compete for the nutrients and develop a nice ear too. As Jane said, plant it in a block not a long row or at least 4 rows wide, we plant each row 30" apart (for cultivation). It depends on wind movement for pollination and in a row is not suitable for that to work. If you plant like Jane does you will need more fertilizer throughout the season, too. Your corn is a regular sweet corn here....like an heirloom variety. Probably not as sweet as some of the varieties we grow and it will not keep very well once it is ripe. the sugar content in this converts to starch very quickly and becomes tough and chewy, sticking to your teeth...UGH! like caramel with a skin. Perfectly ripe it is good, though. so mark your calender for the number of days it is supposed to take to get to maturity and start watching it a week or so before that time. The silk will turn dry and almost black and the corn should feel full in the husk. If you need to peel back the tip to see and it is not ripe it will draw bugs and ruin the tip(s) of the ear(s). You will notice at the bottom of the instructions that it suggests "breaking" the kernel with your thumbnail, that is an excellent way to see if it is ripe. If it is overripe, it won't squirt from the kernel your nail will just break the skin on it and you won't see any milk.
That is fine but you can plant closer if you want. 6 to 8 inches is about what we do. And as was said, divide the plot and put two rows side by side for polination. How large an area are you planting ?
Thanks Calinromania, I will follow the instruction only up to the part that says "sow 3 seeds" and go with one seedling. Thanks Sojerd, I'll go with the one hole one plant just like my last planting following the advice from the members here including you which I got a boutiful harvest of of class A+ corn. Those rats are real scoundrel and I hope you already had a solution for that!!! Thanks Chocolate, maybe I'll just let one hole with two plants to see what is the end result. Marlingardener thanks .... crowding is always never good right? Carolyn thanks for all the info. From my last planting I did not had any germination problem so I am doing it the same. Mart they are planted about 8 inches apart diagonally to each other on a 10ft by 2 feet bed. I plant them diagonally to each so that there is better pollination, It worked for me the last time I planted corn. Thanks for your input.
Hi, just found my corn photos..... Cucumbers and corn ( photo / image / picture from chocolate's Garden ) Nearly ready ( photo / image / picture from chocolate's Garden )
Chocolate, thanks for the photos and I can see the two plants in a hole planting style. I think I'll give it a try because having to get rid of the extra plants is such a waste. Hope I can get more than I cob from each plant. Thanks again.
When the plants are about 16 to 18 inches tall, side dress with whatever fertilizer you use !! Will help ear production !!
