poor corn harvest -- some ideas?

 Hello,

This afternoon I harvested ornamental corn from my backyard garden.  It
was pitiful.  If all farmers were like me, the world would starve.  So
I have some questions, thinking about next year.

*  How do I improve pollination?  I had 4 rows of corn, and about 10-15
plants in each row, about 6 inches apart.  That's closer than the seed
packet recommended, but comparable to the spacing that the local
farmers use.

*  I picked the corn now, even though it wasn't ready, because the
forecast is for cold weather soon.  Would frosty temperatures kill
corn?  If not, I could have left it to grow longer.  The professional
corn farmers in this area harvested about three weeks ago.

Thank you,

Ted Shoemaker, certified Gray Thumb

Madison, Wisconsin, US

USDA zone 4/5
AHS heat zone 4/5
Sunset zone 43

 
shoemakerted@yahoo.com wrote:

*** You and me both, I planted 10' x 10' , very close together and it
still did not pollinate well... the year before I was told do do dense
planting and water an inch of water (min) per week - I planted silver
queen and candy corn, ;P some large sweet kernels, but ugly as sin !

I will watch the responses for what to try next year ! So we don't
starve to death! Hahaha.....

BG

 
[snip]


Six inches is a little tight.  Better to sow your seed farther apart, unless
you intend to heavily fertilize with N the way farmers do.

With such a small patch, you can help things along next time by gently
tapping each tassel early in the morning so that the pollen falls on freshly
emerged silk.  The air must be completely still around the stalk or you/ll
waste your precious pollen.

 On 25 Sep 2006 13:48:48 -0700, "shoemakerted@yahoo.com"


I try for plants 10-12 inches apart and 36 inch rows. I like
even a tad wider rows sometimes (40 inches) so eventual
weeding and watering is easier. Usually I plant at least 4
rows maybe 30 feet long.

Corn is a heavier feeder and anything too close together
runs the risk of becoming stunted. There aren't too many
farmers that plant rows less than ~28 inches. Everything
(soil, rain, sun, nitrogen...) has to be perfect for narrow
rows to work well.

--
Leon Fisk
Grand Rapids  MI/Zone 5b
Remove no.spam for email

 

*** I am in Zone 6 and we do not get much wind as I am on the protected
(from wind) side of a hill, How do the plants pollinate if so far
apart?, 10 -12 inches between the plants, they *might* touch leaf
tips...  Doesn't the pollen need to fall between the leaves and stalk
to form the ear of corn ?   How many ears per plant do you get , I had
3 - 5 per plant, they were just small and hardly kerneled at all!


My plants reached the target height... does stunted refer to another
factor of the plant? More leaved perhaps? Is color of the plant an
indicator, it was medium / dark green...
Grasping at straws , this is the 2nd year growing corn , last year was
worse, the plants were midgets and the ears of corn were not present !
So, I am improving, but the worry over these plants is too much ! haha,
I thought corn was one of those grow it an forget about it crops!
Sheesh!


Thanks for any help!
BG
Zone 6
Boise,ID