Corn.

I planted out my corn last weekend over the bank holiday. As you can see it was reasonably well grown and frankly didn’t need to spend more time indoors.

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However, the day after I put it out, the heavens opened and it rained for 48 hours straight. I’m going back this weekend to see how they have done. I’ve not had the time in between. However, the soil is very moist so everything should be OK. Will let you know.

The best way to grow corn is to choose a site that gets full sun and a soil with pH 6-6.8. Corn needs soil that’s both rich, moisture-retentive and well-draining. So dig in some compost and if you’ve got it some manure.

Make sure plants get at least an 4cm of water a week, but never from above – it can wash away pollen.

If you wish you can feed plants with organic fertilizer three times: when they reach 25cm, then 52cm, and when tassels appear.

Remember though that corn is a big consumer of nitrogen and phosphorus. If you find that your leaves are yellowing, it’s a sign of nitrogen deficiency – spray with manure ‘tea’ or fish emulsion (obviously not the latter if you are a vegetarian).

You can then pick the corn husks when the silks are dry and brown but still supple. For most varieties, that will be about 20 days after the silks appear.

Happy corn on the cob………. 🙂

By the way, it can take 90 days to grow, so make sure you have the quick growing varieties like ‘Precocious’.