never planted it before, have a spot 10' by 20' (the foot print of my boat) all tilled ready to go, saw this from jal_ut, Sir, does this still hold true, it was a few years back.
These small crowded plantings still won't do as well as 3 to 5 rows spaced 32 inches with a plant every foot in the row. Corn is a large plant, nitrogen hungry, thirsty, and needing sunshine and breeze to bring carbon dioxide for growth. It also needs to have other corn near so it gets pollinated well. The wind moves the pollen around too. Give corn what it needs and watch it go.
figuring on doing about 100+ seeds spaced as directed above, I figure 3 to 5 rows, shaped like a boat. I am planting this weekend,
is there anything I should amend the soil with before planting, I've hit it with bone meal,compost, old leaves and grass all tilled in.
As always thanks for the answers,
Oh yeah, bodasious, silver queen, and some super sweet, I think all are super hybreds.
OK, with that space stick with only 1 variety.
I've grown bodacious and love it, its great for a yellow corn, this year I'm growing ambrosia which is a bicolor corn.
Maybe you should plant double rows with each corn stalk spaced 10-12 inches apart in rows and 8-10 inches between each h row. You could fit more in your space going double rows.
Corn loves nitrogen, blood meal is a great source of nitrogen over bone meal...
Coffee grounds is another good source of nitrogen
I've grown bodacious and love it, its great for a yellow corn, this year I'm growing ambrosia which is a bicolor corn.
Maybe you should plant double rows with each corn stalk spaced 10-12 inches apart in rows and 8-10 inches between each h row. You could fit more in your space going double rows.
Corn loves nitrogen, blood meal is a great source of nitrogen over bone meal...
Coffee grounds is another good source of nitrogen
-
jal_ut
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 7447
- Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2009 10:20 pm
- Location: Northern Utah Zone 5
Yes, what I said earlier is still true.
I would plant 4 rows in that 10 ft wide spot. Put the outer rows about ten inches from the edge. Plant your seed 8 inches apart. That will give you 120 plants. I think it will do well at that density.
As a rule, corn will produce two large ears per plant. I guess that is why they call them ears? If it is crowded it will produce one or none.
I want a report!
Good luck.
I would plant 4 rows in that 10 ft wide spot. Put the outer rows about ten inches from the edge. Plant your seed 8 inches apart. That will give you 120 plants. I think it will do well at that density.
As a rule, corn will produce two large ears per plant. I guess that is why they call them ears? If it is crowded it will produce one or none.
I want a report!
Good luck.
-
jal_ut
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 7447
- Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2009 10:20 pm
- Location: Northern Utah Zone 5
Oh, forgot to address the three variety plan. If you do plant three varieties, I would take a third of the length of the bed for each variety and plant 4 rows, rather than make a full row of a variety. I think you will get better pollination like that. It would be a good sized block and they should pollinate fine.
One of the problems with a single row of corn has always been getting it to pollinate right. Two or more rows seems to work much better.
One of the problems with a single row of corn has always been getting it to pollinate right. Two or more rows seems to work much better.
Don't know if you care to hear but when I put my corn seeds in the ground I space my seeds usually 10-12 inches apart and on those 10-12 inches I put 3 corn seeds spaced roughly 3 inches apart...
Some say this is wasting seeds but I never have bare spots... this way I choose the best out of 3 seedlings and pull the 2 seeker ones. I prefer this way over putting seeds thick in a furrow then thinning...
Everyone has their preferred methods of planting seeds. This way works great for doing double rows, all you need to is space them further then 3 inches.
Some say this is wasting seeds but I never have bare spots... this way I choose the best out of 3 seedlings and pull the 2 seeker ones. I prefer this way over putting seeds thick in a furrow then thinning...
Everyone has their preferred methods of planting seeds. This way works great for doing double rows, all you need to is space them further then 3 inches.
-
Gary350
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 7445
- Joined: Mon Mar 23, 2009 1:59 pm
- Location: TN. 50 years of gardening experience.
Corn does not do well in a small crop unless you make the tiny crop think it is a large crop.
I have been planting corn for 40 years in tiny crops with great results. I plant my rows 1 ft apart with the seeds 8" apart in each row.
A 10' by 20" spot will give you 9 rows with 30 seeds per row = 270 plants. Corn is self pollenating if you plant it close enough together it will self pollenate and do fine. I also plant north/south rows to make sure the plants get sunlight on both sides of the plants.
Now my corn looks like this, starting to grow tassels.
I have 5 rows of corn 6 ft tall, 1 ft between rows, 18 plants per row. Very small garden compared to the places where I use to live.
What is the problem with this FORUM. I click submit and nothing happens, just sets there?
I have been planting corn for 40 years in tiny crops with great results. I plant my rows 1 ft apart with the seeds 8" apart in each row.
A 10' by 20" spot will give you 9 rows with 30 seeds per row = 270 plants. Corn is self pollenating if you plant it close enough together it will self pollenate and do fine. I also plant north/south rows to make sure the plants get sunlight on both sides of the plants.
Now my corn looks like this, starting to grow tassels.
I have 5 rows of corn 6 ft tall, 1 ft between rows, 18 plants per row. Very small garden compared to the places where I use to live.
What is the problem with this FORUM. I click submit and nothing happens, just sets there?
Last edited by Gary350 on Wed May 22, 2013 1:41 pm, edited 10 times in total.
I have a small space and the tassels are half gone before the ear silks come out. So, with only 47 or so plants to work with, I bag the tassels if the ears are not ready and hand pollinate so I get better fill on the ears. I would not get second filled ears unless I bag some of the tassels for them.
-
jal_ut
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 7447
- Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2009 10:20 pm
- Location: Northern Utah Zone 5
Corn is an interesting plant. Normally it will produce two ears per stalk. That is where the fruit got the name ears I think, one on each side. If planted too thick, it will only produce one ear or none. If planted too thin it won't get pollinated properly and the ears will have spotty kernels on it. Different varieties reach different size and the larger types need more room than the small types. We are each going to have to experiment with our plantings and varieties to find the optimal spacing for our corn and our conditions.
I was once going to grow a truckload of corn on a 16 foot square plot. I put rows at 12 inches and plants at 6 inches. The variety was NK199. What I got was a truck load of stalks, but the only plants that had any ears were those on the very outside of the patch. The crowded stuff in the middle had no ears, though it did tassel.
I would have gotten more corn from that small planting if I had made rows at 30 inches and plants at 8 inches. I know from experience that plantings at this density will make two ears per stalk and pollination is good if at least three rows are planted.
Back to what I said earlier, try something, but do keep notes for future reference.
Gary350, when your corn makes ears will you please report how many ears per stalk in that crowded planting?
I was once going to grow a truckload of corn on a 16 foot square plot. I put rows at 12 inches and plants at 6 inches. The variety was NK199. What I got was a truck load of stalks, but the only plants that had any ears were those on the very outside of the patch. The crowded stuff in the middle had no ears, though it did tassel.
I would have gotten more corn from that small planting if I had made rows at 30 inches and plants at 8 inches. I know from experience that plantings at this density will make two ears per stalk and pollination is good if at least three rows are planted.
Back to what I said earlier, try something, but do keep notes for future reference.
Gary350, when your corn makes ears will you please report how many ears per stalk in that crowded planting?