Who can resist sweet corn on the cob at a summer barbeque? How about a bowl of home-grown popcorn for movie night? Corn is a great addition to any garden.
Corn does require a bit of extra care to protect it against pests and disease. Unfortunately, lots of our wildlife friends and those pesky insects love corn too!
Get ready because I’m going to share with you some proven tips and tricks to have an abundant corn harvest.
Corn can be grown in a field like my neighbors corn in the banner or in a raised bed like this one. Just make sure to pay attention to the direction so the mature corn doesnt shade out the beans. Or plan it so it shades the lettuce!
Varieties
Most home gardeners grow sweet corn, but there are also many varieties of dried corn, like popcorn or for corn flour, that you can try out! They also make for beautiful decorative displays in Autumn.
Sweet Corn
Silver Queen (a family favorite!) offers the classic, white ears of corn that come to mind when you think of sweet corn. The full ears are about 8 to 9 inches long and have a lovely sweet, creamy flavor. Tall plants grow to about 8 feet.
They are a great midsummer treat and are delicious steamed, or grilled on the cob. This variety is also a good choice if you want to freeze corn for winter.
It grows well in USDA Zone 6B, is a good choice for beginner gardeners, and is resistant to several common corn diseases including Southern Leaf Blight and Stewart’s Wilt disease.
This variety takes about 88 days to reach maturity. It is an F1 hybrid so the seeds saved will not reliably produce the same corn as the parent plant.
Golden Bantam Corn
If you prefer yellow sweet corn then Golden Bantam is a sure bet. An open-pollinated heirloom with 8-inch ears. The plant gets 6 feet tall and takes 80 days to mature.
Golden Bantam germinates well in cool soils so you can get it in a bit early.
Most sweet corn for fresh eating is white or yellow, but Japanese Black Sticky Corn is a fun exception. You can harvest young ears from this variety when the kernels begin to turn purple, and it has a mildly sweet flavor that works well for fresh eating.
Japanese Black Sticky Corn makes fabulous mochi (rice cakes)! Harvest fully mature ears with deep purple-black kernels to use as a grain. This variety was developed in Japan in the 19th century and takes about 100 days to reach maturity. It is an heirloom and can be used for seed saving.
Strawberry popcorn is a fabulous variety for small spaces and family fun!
Grain Corn
Strawberry Popcorn
Strawberry popcorn is probably the cutest type of corn I have ever seen. This variety produces small, 2 to 3-inch ears of deep red corn that truly do look like strawberries. The four-foot plants produce 2 - 4 ears and are a great choice for urban gardens.
It works well for popcorn as the name implies, and can also be used to grind into cornmeal. This variety takes 95-100 days to reach maturity. It is an heirloom variety and can be used for seed saving.
Painted Mountain
Painted Mountain is a beautiful, multi-color corn that can be used in a variety of ways. If you harvest young ears, it is a great choice for roasting. Fully mature ears of corn can be used to make cornmeal or flour for basking. I used it to make tortilla chips one year!
Painted Mountain has a reputation for being hardy and sturdy! Does well in Zone 6B and typically handles higher winds without lodging. This Native American heirloom variety takes 70 to 90 days to reach maturity.
Ears are 6-7 inches long and plants grow 4 - 5 feet tall (another good choice for the small garden). It is open-pollinated and can be used for seed saving.
If you have late summer droughts another trick is to plant your corn in a slight depression
Planting
Corn is typically direct sown outside however, it can be started indoors to get a jump on the season. I start corn inside in mid-April, or else I will plant outside in early May. Use a soil thermometer and wait for the soil to be at least 55 degrees.
Plant in a sunny spot in well-draining soil. Plant seeds 1-2 inches in the soil. Water well after planting. If you’re planting a large crop try to plant after rain.
If a cold spell is coming cover young seedlings with row fabric. Read more about using row fabric in our article on extending the season.
Corn needs nutrient-rich soil to grow well. Add one -three inches of aged compost into your garden to enrich it before planting corn. A pH of 6.2 to 6.4 is best.
Read my article on the planting schedule for Zone 6B.
Pollination
Pay attention to the dates to maturity when planting corn. Corn is wind pollinated.
If you plant more than one variety you run the risk of them cross-pollinating. Cross-pollination can result in poor-quality ears.
Johnnys Seeds recommends the following practices when planting corn.
1) Plant super sweet varieties at least 300 feet from non-super sweet varieties, or
2) Stagger plantings by a 12-day planting date difference and separate each planting by 25 feet, or
3) Plant varieties that will mature at least 12 days apart and separate each planting by 25 feet.
Check out my new book on Amazon - a comprehensive growing guide for Zone 6.
Timing and Pollination
Pay attention to the seed packet. Corn comes in early-, mid-, and late-season varieties. To assure good pollination plan to sow at least 20 plants.
I typically look at my harvest dates and then plant about two weeks apart. For instance, I typically plant Silver Queen (80-90 days) and Painted Mountain (70 - 90 days). These two have a lot of overlap.
In my experience, Painted Mountain does better with the hot dry days of August. So I typically plant Silver Queen first and Painted Mountain a couple of weeks later.
Tips
For small plants plant your corn in blocks 4 inches apart for shorter varieties
The Square Foot Gardening method actually works well for small gardens
Larger gardens plant in rows every 12-24 inches depending on overall height.
Caring
Water
It also requires consistent watering; water it thoroughly at least once per week.
Fertilize
Problems
There are many diseases and pests that could potentially harm your corn, so it is important to take precautions and monitor your plants as they grow.
Practice crop rotation
No-till practices lower some incidences of diseases
Plant resistant varieties (check with your local extension office)
Some common pests for corn include armyworm, wireworm, and flea beetle. University of Kentucky recommends regularly checking your corn plants for signs of insect damage in its Integrated Pest Management fact sheets.
That way, you can catch a problem early before it causes too much damage. You can bring out a bucket of soapy water and pluck pests off your corn plants into the water to kill them.
Corn Smut. The edible problem. Picture by Kai Hirdes.
Corn Smut The Edible Pathogenic Fungal Disease
Corn smut is a fungus that causes galls (swelling) on ears, leaves, and tassels of sweet and field corn. The fungus overwinters in the soil.
The good news! Smut is an edible fungus and is considered a gourmet treat in some areas. You may hear it called Mexican truffles.
If your corn patch gets Smut remove the infected parts of the plant. The corn is still edible although it may not be pretty.
Check out our video channel!
Corn Insect Pests
Corn has a number of insect pests. Good monitoring of the ears is very important as the bugs can get down inside the ears and cause damage without you realizing it.
Corn Ear Worms
The earworm eats the kernels and the silks of the corn ear. Their larvae also attack tomatoes and eat the fruits.
An inexpensive remedy is to put vegetable oil on the tip
Spraying with an organic pesticide sich as BT
Cucumber Beetles
These striped or spotted beetles are easy to spot and pick off. They love cucumber and squash plants but the larvae will eat the roots of corn plants and the adults the leaves.
Let’s see - how can I get in here? Photo by Ame Vanorio
Wildlife Corn Pests
Yes at Fox Run EEC we somewhat perpetuated our own problems by releasing deer and raccoons on the property. However, this gave our director, Ame, some good hands-on experimentation with what humane options work best.
Fencing is your friend.
Deer
In my article Everything You Want To Know About White-Tailed Deer I go into more detail but here are the basics.
A substantial eight-foot fence is the best
A slanted fence that is 6 feet and slopes outward at a 45-degree angle.
An electric fence also works well. Use three strands at 18, 30, and 42 inches high.
Deer netting is not as effective because it is flimsy.
Repellents are also limited in their effectiveness.
Raccoons
Raccoons are highly intelligent and persistent. If you have intense raccoon pressure use a dog kennel with a wire top and grow corn or other plants inside of it.
I used to recommend a radio tuned into a talk show but raccoons are becoming more urbanized and adapted to people this does not work very well anymore.
Obviously, that works in smaller garden areas. What if you are trying to keep raccoons out of a larger cornfield?
Electric fencing will deter raccoons. Use two strands around the perimeter. The lower strand needs to be 6 inches above the ground and the next strand needs to be 12 inches above the ground.
Read my article That Rascally Raccoon for tips on keeping raccoons out of attics and the garbage.
Weed Management
Unfortunately, weeds love cornfields! The tall corn plants allow plenty of sun to reach the soil helping the weed seeds to germinate. Tilling in fall and again in early spring can help expose weed seeds to your friendly bird helpers (chickens or songbirds).
For small plots, you can mulch corn with straw or wood chips. Check out our article on mulching.
Consider a Three Sisters Garden described below
For large plots get out the hoe and slice off those weeds as they begin to grow. Careful not to hoe too close to the corn plant as they have shallow roots.
Common Weeds in Zone 6B
Learn how to identify these common weeds
Pigweed
Foxtail
Morning Glory - this beautiful flower is the bane of my existence!!
Cocklebur
Ragweed
Crabgrass
Companion Planting
Corn is part of one of the oldest known companion plant groupings known as Three Sisters. Indigenous Americans plant corn with squash and beans - the corn provides support, the beans fix nitrogen into the soil, and the pumpkins or squashes suppress weed growth with their vines.
There is more about the Three Sisters garden method in our blog on Growing Winter Squash. And you can check out the video below.
Harvesting and Storing
Harvest sweet corn once kernels are developed, and if they emit a milky liquid when punctured. It’s best to eat sweet corn the day you pick it however, unshucked sweet corn can last up to one week in the refrigerator.
Dried corn should be harvested when the kernels are fully mature and hard to the touch. If a frost is coming, you can harvest the corn early and let it finish drying inside.
Seed Saving
Open-pollinated hybrids and heirloom varieties of corn can be used for seed saving. However, corn is a wind-pollinated crop, which makes cross-pollination a big risk. Cross-pollinated seeds will not reliably produce the same type of corn as the parent plant.
If you are going to save seeds isolate corn varieties from each other by one fourth mile to prevent cross-pollination. Wind pollination also means that isolation methods like nylon to keep insects out will not work.
The Seed Savers Exchange recommends staggering your corn planting schedule so that only one variety flowers at a time, to prevent cross-pollination. That may require coordination with your neighbors, though, if they are growing corn as well!
Guest Author, Taryn Dawn, first began food gardening with her family when she was four years old and planted a patch of radishes. Now, she and her husband have a food garden on one acre in Virginia, which they have expanded over the last decade to include many vegetables, fruit, and nuts. Taryn has a MSc in Sustainable Food Systems from Green Mountain College and tries to implement sustainable production practices.
According to the EPA, the average medium size dog creates 274 pounds (125 kg) of waste each year. That’s a lot of poop!. Your backyard may be a minefield of dog manure and you don’t know what to do!