Help! I had this problem last year to. Last year, at least 100 bumble bees each and every day attacked all of my corns tassels, stealing the pollen to feed their babies. ( it took an exaustive amount of research to find this all out). Short of pesticide dusts, what can I do. I am afraid the pesticide dusts will get absorbed into the pollens and contaminate the corn crop. Last year I watched helplessly, This years corn crop is really looking strong so far.
Please help
Thanks
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Alan in Vermont
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You can pollinate the corn yourself. Take the little seed thingys (tech term 
) off the tassels and sprinkle on to the silk. Not hard at all. Good luck.
) off the tassels and sprinkle on to the silk. Not hard at all. Good luck.
Last edited by specgrade on Sat Jul 31, 2010 8:03 am, edited 1 time in total.
Hmmmm.....this is a new one for me. I always assumes that by gathering pollen, some from on plant would be inadvertently dropped on the next one (pollination).
Aside from going with pesticides, you could try planting a distraction-crop, like flower that are extremely appealing to bees. This way, they will bother your flowers and not the corn.
Good luck and let us know how everything turns out.
Aside from going with pesticides, you could try planting a distraction-crop, like flower that are extremely appealing to bees. This way, they will bother your flowers and not the corn.
Good luck and let us know how everything turns out.
I've been shaking my head, confused, for almost 24 hours. How can bees "steal" pollen? Don't they assist in pollination by redistributing it? 
What will we do with corn pollen? Do people eat it? I grew corn once (the minimum amount: four plants by four plants), but didn't even notice the pollen. What I noticed was how much the corn plants looked like the bamboo we planted the corn next to...in Berkeley.
Please: someone explain to me how bees steal pollen, why this is a problem, and what the consequences are to corn plants and/or the gardener(s). I'm not understanding it.
Thx.
Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9
What will we do with corn pollen? Do people eat it? I grew corn once (the minimum amount: four plants by four plants), but didn't even notice the pollen. What I noticed was how much the corn plants looked like the bamboo we planted the corn next to...in Berkeley.
Please: someone explain to me how bees steal pollen, why this is a problem, and what the consequences are to corn plants and/or the gardener(s). I'm not understanding it.
Thx.
Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9
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The Helpful Gardener
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I tassled the corn myself this year, shaking the tassels into the silks and from plant to plant this year. The bees thing is both new and difficult to comprehend. Please provide research links...
Cynthia, I do think this possible; being wind pollinated, the bees have no need to visit the female flower (silks) of the plant. They could mob the boys, shorting the girls. That's why I do by hand as soon as I saw tassles opening...
HG
Cynthia, I do think this possible; being wind pollinated, the bees have no need to visit the female flower (silks) of the plant. They could mob the boys, shorting the girls. That's why I do by hand as soon as I saw tassles opening...
HG
well bees transferring pollen from one plant to the next isn't how corn pollinates though from what I've read. the wind etc is what pollinates it each silk strand needs pollen to land on it to pollinate it. so if the bees are taking the pollen away then there prob isn't as much going to fall on the silks. perhaps the bees would knock it down onto the silks?
I'm no corn expert, I've just read about how to take care of it so this is what I've gathered from that.
I'm no corn expert, I've just read about how to take care of it so this is what I've gathered from that.
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jal_ut
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Honest, there is not a problem. Like I said earlier, there is enough pollen to pollinate the ears and the bees can have their fill too. I watch the pollen drop and get caught by the leaves and it rolls down the leaves and makes a little pool of yellow pollen in the nodes. The honey bees will get in that pool and roll around like ol' Scrouge playing in his money bin. They will pack their pollen baskets full and fly away home. There will be enough pollen flying around to pollinate every kernel. Relax.
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applestar
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That sounds so cute! Someone should make a Short animated video of that! 
It could be a humidity issue -- the pollen clump up together sometimes and won't fly free. I'm astonished by the amount of pollen when they are flying loose though. I do the tassel shaking too. I even cut off some tassels and pollinate silks that are lower down. I'm lazy generally, but I like to fuss about special projects.
It could be a humidity issue -- the pollen clump up together sometimes and won't fly free. I'm astonished by the amount of pollen when they are flying loose though. I do the tassel shaking too. I even cut off some tassels and pollinate silks that are lower down. I'm lazy generally, but I like to fuss about special projects.
Corn is wind pollinated so it does not need bees to transfer pollen from flower to flower (tassel to silk), and there is no "flower" on the ears to attract pollen coated bees. If there is no wind and/or the corn is not planted in a block then you can expect poor ear development. With no wind some of the leaves will block pollen from hitting silks as it drifts straight down. With wind and corn planted in only one or two rows instead of a block the directional wind will blow pollen away from plants. If there is enough air movement to swirl the pollen for good ear development the bees will be someplace else.
If it is really a problem of bees depleating pollen (you shake stalks at different times of day and no pollen shakes loose) I would take some brown paper bags and put over a few tassels and then the next day cut those tassels and shake them over the silks.
If it is really a problem of bees depleating pollen (you shake stalks at different times of day and no pollen shakes loose) I would take some brown paper bags and put over a few tassels and then the next day cut those tassels and shake them over the silks.
To steal enough pollen to inhibit pollination a bee would literally need a dump truck to haul it away in... If you look at hybrid seed corn production (field corn, sweet corn, popcorn) you only have 1 male (tassels intact) row for every 4 rows of female (de-tasseled) plants...
Corn is self pollinating. It needs no help other than gravity and some wind...
Corn pollination will severely suffer in temperatures above 85F, during dry conditions and under heavy weed pressure. Heavy weed pressure, where weeds are above the forming ears will shroud the ear from the pollen. Under drought conditions pollination suffers due to lack of moisture available to the plant. When the tassel begins to push out and silks begin to emerge that corn needs a lot of water... An inch a week is a rule of thumb....
Bees will go after corn pollen when other sources of pollen are scarce.
Corn is self pollinating. It needs no help other than gravity and some wind...
Corn pollination will severely suffer in temperatures above 85F, during dry conditions and under heavy weed pressure. Heavy weed pressure, where weeds are above the forming ears will shroud the ear from the pollen. Under drought conditions pollination suffers due to lack of moisture available to the plant. When the tassel begins to push out and silks begin to emerge that corn needs a lot of water... An inch a week is a rule of thumb....
Bees will go after corn pollen when other sources of pollen are scarce.
I wouldn't think bees could hurt anything by taking a little pollen.
This was the first year I tried to plant corn. We did 7 rows, each about 10 feet long (our plot is 20x20, so it was about a 4th of the garden). My 2 big problems were japanese beetles tearing up the leaves and the pollen tassels before there was pollen ready to fall off them, and deer eating the silks and top half of many of the ears. We've picked a couple dozen after trying to guess when they might be ready. We figured that without silks intact, they'd never really mature much more anyway. About half of what we picked was worth cooking and eating, although we had to cut some ears to remove what was chewed on.
This was the first year I tried to plant corn. We did 7 rows, each about 10 feet long (our plot is 20x20, so it was about a 4th of the garden). My 2 big problems were japanese beetles tearing up the leaves and the pollen tassels before there was pollen ready to fall off them, and deer eating the silks and top half of many of the ears. We've picked a couple dozen after trying to guess when they might be ready. We figured that without silks intact, they'd never really mature much more anyway. About half of what we picked was worth cooking and eating, although we had to cut some ears to remove what was chewed on.
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The Helpful Gardener
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Had some of mine tonight; sweet enough but a bit starchy. I think I needed more agua; perhaps the elevated bed isn't as optimal as ground. No borers, no diseases, a bit floppy but certainly edible. More water next year...
Hmmm... perhaps not an optimal crop for me and my friend Jeff is selling GREAT sweet corn at the farmers market. Perhaps melons there next year? Or pumpkins? (The squash are still going beserk...) Or more water?
Hmmm...
HG
Hmmm... perhaps not an optimal crop for me and my friend Jeff is selling GREAT sweet corn at the farmers market. Perhaps melons there next year? Or pumpkins? (The squash are still going beserk...) Or more water?
Hmmm...
HG
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The Helpful Gardener
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What's your method for knowing when your corn's at it's peak?jal_ut wrote:Yes, you put the water on to boil then go pick the corn.I've always hear that corn is best eaten fresh rather than buying it ahead of time an storing it.
All this talk about sweet corn has my mouth watering. Mine is still a few days off. Can't wait.