Corn

Golden Bantam ($3.50) – 78 days, open pollinated.  The time tested 8 – rowed variety with real corn taste.  Large, golden kernels on good sized cobs.  Heritage variety.  Plant height 5-6ft.  Don’t grow next to hybrid, may cross pollinate.

Bloody Butcher Corn ($3.50) – 120  days, Bloody Butcher is an old dent-type corn has been grown since at least 1845. The stalks reach ten to twelve feet tall with two to six ears of corn per stalk. The kernels are striped red or dark red on pink to red cobs. An occasional white ear may appear.  Can be used for rosting or frying when young but generally used for flour or corn meal.  Good flavored.

Sweet corn has become more popular over the last 15 years due to improved varieties that mature earlier and stay sweet longer.  Most varieties out there are hybrids because of the intense breeding done on sweet corn.

(Tip) Corn: Sow outdoors in late spring when soil is warm, usually 2-4 weeks after field corn is planted.  Cool weather and excessive moisture will cause poor seed emergence.  Soil – corn can be grown in a wide range of soil types PH 6-6.8.  Fertility – Corn thrives on liberal amounts of Nitrogen.  Apply part before planting and again when corn is about 2ft high.  For proper ear placement and fill out, corn requires adequate moisture.  Germination – 5-7 days at 70F, cool soil will decrease germination.  Sow 6-10 cm / 2-4” apart and 1 cm / ½ “ deep in rows, 75cm – 30” apart.  Thin out to 20cm/8”.  Main pests are ear worms and corn maggots.  Control earworms with BT applied to husks at time of pollination and 1 week after.  Corn maggots can be controlled by seed treatment.  Untreated sweet corn seed is more susceptible to temperature change and insect damage.  In our area, rusts are the main disease problem in late summer.  Use tolerant varieties if growing in late summer.  For proper pollination plant the same variety in blocks of 4 rows or more.