What about suckering corn?

[Taiji]

What do most people do, remove suckers from corn plants or leave them on?

[jal_ut]

Most people? I dunno.

Me: Leave them be.

[Taiji]

Thx! No one can argue with your results, that's for sure!

I always get worried when the suckers are one third or half as big as the whole corn plant; I keep thinking of all the nutrients that must be going into the sucker!

[jal_ut]

Hey, I dunno........ those are leaves, and leaves make food to nourish the plant. Could they be a plus?

Like I said, I never worry about it and the plants give me some ears so I am happy.

[imafan26]

Some people do remove the suckers and some varieties of corn are more prone to suckering. If your corn is healthy and has enough food and water then it doesn't matter. If it competes with your main corn stalk then remove them. Most of the time a healthy main stalk will out compete them.

[Taiji]

Yeah, I was googling this question, seems like there's a lot of disagreement about it, but looks like most modern thinking says leave them alone. One article said if your corn has suckers, it's a sign that the soil is good and healthy. And as you say imafan, the healthy main stalk will usually win out. People actually get some decent ears from the sucker sometimes.

I have been removing them so far this year, but think I'll let them alone now.

[sweetiepie]

I leave mine too.

[tomc]

If you are having a Martha Stewart week, remove suckers, and alphabetize them. Otherwise let them be.

[Taiji]

Ha ha. I like and respect Martha, but I'm the poster boy for disorganization and procrastination. I probably won't be doing much alphabetizing...! I think I'll leave em alone.

[jal_ut]

"I always get worried when the suckers are one third or half as big as the whole corn plant; I keep thinking of all the nutrients that must be going into the sucker!"

Like I mentioned those "suckers" are leaves and they make food to feed the plant. I can't bring myself to believe that they take anything from the main stalk, or are in competition with it. I do believe that they add to the overall ability of the plant to make food. Leave them be.

[rainbowgardener]

Well, the energy the leaves produce is from sunlight. The water and "nutrients" are what the plant takes up through the roots and that would be shared between the main stalk and the sucker stem. If the plant is in the ground in good rich soil, then there is plenty for everyone and it shouldn't be an issue. If you were trying to grow corn in pretty depleted soil or in a container, then there might be a problem about dividing the nutrients that way.