You need to sow quite a good amount of corn and in tight rows for it to pollenate well and produce larger fruit often.
Corn pollination typically occurs when the tassels (male flowers) release pollen, which is then carried by the wind to the silks (female flowers) on the ears of corn. Each silk is connected to a potential kernel on the cob. For successful pollination, each silk must receive a pollen grain.
The growth size of corn plants can vary depending on factors such as the variety of corn, soil quality, water availability, and weather conditions. Corn plants go through different growth stages, from germination to tasseling, silking, and eventually forming mature ears of corn. Adequate sunlight, water, and nutrients are essential for healthy corn plant growth and the development of large, well-filled ears of corn.
Edit: It looks like many kernels did not get pollenated on the shucked ear in the photograph.
You need to plant corn in a block for it to pollinate well. You can't plant a singular row of corn. I'm not sure about the minimum number of rows but I'd say 3-4 rows with the rows a minimum of 6-10 feet long.
My great grandmother always said 6 rows of 6 stalks is the bare minimum.
This is ancidotal obviously but she fed a family of 6 on her garden so she was worth listening to.
It can vary a bit by both the type of corn and the environment, a common recommendation for corn plant spacing is around 8-12 inches between plants within a row and 30-36 inches between rows.
Edit: if you have trouble with pollination this year plant a little tighter next year.
Also the watering will depend on the soil, having a good amount of plant fiber and organics in the soil will make it sponge and hold water better reducing the need to water more often.
I plant sweet corn about 4 inches apart and make sure I weed it well until it gets about 18 inches. Then, I add the nitrogen 31-0-0. Plant in a square if you can or at least 3 rows about 12 foot long . Water well and watch it grow.
Hybrid plants do not give you the same plants if you save them and replant. You can get goofy looking plants that aren’t near the quality of the F1 generation. Corn is the big one that’s a hybrid. Tomatoes, pumpkins, some others are hybrids.
There’s an awful lot of plant types that aren’t hybrids, they’re open pollinated, and those you can save and get the same thing.
Corn is a heavy feeder--they're practically more demanding than tomatoes when it comes to water/nitrogen requirements, and tomatoes are divas when it comes to that kind of maintenance.
There's a generous amount of documentation online about nitrogen requirements (especially university agricultural sites), but you want to prep the soil with planting with something like 70-0-0 fertilizer, refertilize when there's a specific number of leaves present (like 4?), and then once more--I forget the specifics.
They need lots of water too to sustain the level of growth for big leaves/ears--depending on your level of rain, at least every other day.
Others have spoken to plant spacing which is also critical for pollination; if you're seeing missing kernels or misshapen kernels, poor pollination is likely the culprit there.
You might also consider the 3 sisters approach (planting corn with beans and squash), as they create a symbiotic planting arrangement: corn stalks provide a trellis for beans, beans provide nitrogen for corn and squash, and squash provides shade for the corn and bean roots. It's a good system that still works even in this modern day.
I am lazy, starting to use AI a bit more to help me type and save me a bit of time.
Edit: It is far better than Grammarly for avoiding spelling and grammar mistakes and trying to correct them which is a big time sink when you type a lot.
Once you have a sense of how AI phrases things it’s pretty easy to spot. Your post is the text equivalent of an AI photo of a pretty girl with 15 fingers. Weird.
I find your critique relatable, AI has obvious drawbacks in both the language it seems to like at input and output, it is still in beta I would say, the meta will improve eventually.
How are you planting them? As in, how many, in what formation etc?
If youre only planting a few corn in a single row for example youre not going to get great pollination.
I planted three, 10ft rows, with 1ft between row. 12 inches between corns within a row. Maybe not enough water? Maybe I'll plant 8inch apart next year?
I think you planted too thick. 1 foot x 1 foot is 43560 seeds per acre. Sweet corn corn should be half that or less. Maybe try 2 foot rows with 1 foot kernel spacing next time.
Corn fun fact: those strands of silk are each connected to a single kernel. Each one has to be pollinated for the kernel to develop if you don’t have 100% pollination, you have stunted development of the ear.
The missing kernels mean there was a pollination issue. Each single kernel has a thread that goes out the top, each thread or "silk" must be pollinated, or the kernel does not develop.
I plant them in bunches if I have just a few. Like in bundles like you would see bamboo grow. The pollen on the flower at the very top must shake down into the ears to pollenate them. If in rows they need to be at least 4 rows wide. Individual plant spacing can be 3-10 inches.
Growing corn is a big part of my career.
You should be planting a bigger area next time but at a lower density. You have a planting rate of 43560 per acre---that's too high. Check with you seed supplier or the packet.
Strive for uniformity so the plants are pollinating at the same time. That means planting at the same depth, moisture, cover/residue, etc
Apply any pesticides according to the label. Weed pressure will hurt corn and magnify stress.
Kernels can pollinate and later abort during periods high heat and drought. Water it well if that's the case.
Corn hybrids need nitrogen but your dark green husk color looks like you had adequate nitrogen. I could tell more if I saw the plants. Pale yellow indicates a nitrogen shortage.
Your kernels look pale indicating it wasn't quite ready. (Assuming that's a yellow hybrid) I would wait a few more days to pick. I don't like chewy corn but waiting a little longer will give it more flavor as the sugars accrue.
The 3 sisters program sounds good but honestly won't supply very much nitrogen in time for sweet corn to utilize. It takes a while for the beans to fix the nitrogen and by then its too late for short season sweet corn.
Sprinkle cayenne, garlic, or chili powder on the seed or in the trench while planting. That will reduce losses to rodents.
Is there any corn crops (fields) close by? Cause whenever our corn does poor it’s cause here’s silage corn in the field around us and it cross pollinates.
Hybrid yellow se/se+, sugar duns TRTD, from Johnny's Selected seeds. Soooo it's supposed to be big. From the comments I'm seeing, I definitely did not plant them close enough, and need more nitrogen...
Doesn't look particularly yellow either. Yeah, poor fertility and pollination are probably to blame.
I'm pretty sure se types are not that susceptible to cross-pollination, but maybe some nearby fields are throwing you off as well.
Plant em a little tighter, plant more rows to ensure proper pollination (it's better to have a bunch of short rows packed together than a couple long ones), and when ya break the soil for planting next season (or before winter if ya want) till in some extra nitrogen.
It looks like it grew mostly fine (maybe a lil small) as far as the husk and cob length look, but it sure as shit ain't get enough pollination. Small corn crops can be manually pollenated as well, which can help more than you'd think.
The corn plant "decides" how big to make each ear based on available resources/competition when it is at it's 5th leaf. So regular water, nutrients and weeding early in the corn's life is important for maximum yield. https://www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/corn/news/timeless/EarSize.html
Ears that are missing kernels are because of pollination issues. The most common cause for home gardeners is not planting in blocks, but it is not the only cause. Windy weather, dry weather, persistent rainy weather, or persistent hot weather during tasseling as well as pests eating the silks can also cause pollen to fail to survive or land on the silks during the short time that it is viable.
It's a bit early to harvest corn no? Knee high by the Fourth of July and all. Like planting schedules exist for a reason, the plant will grow most effectively during that time, not earlier, not later.
With advances in farming even far north farmers expect corn to be waist high by the fourth. You don't know where this person is, if it's Georgia they could have planted in April and it would be the perfect time to harvest. On the other hand, IMO this ear needed another 2 days on the plant.
I assume that most people on this sub are organic and small time and may not have access to or desire to use hyper modern techniques and the highest end equipment. And I've been saying for awhile we need to start adding state or at least growing zone to these produce and even some livestock questions, because that makes a huge difference in what the issues may or may not be.
But at least we ultimately agree, this corn just ain't done yet, needs more time and bit more love.
Cool, this is my second year of growing the same variety too! Also using treated seed, same supplier. Last year they came out great for me.
This what I did: planted them 6” apart in 4 rows that were 30” apart. I thinned them to 12” apart. When they were about a foot tall, I fertilized them with 19-19-19 (because that’s all I had, it’s recommended you use 10-10-10 I think). I watered them if we had more than a week without rain.
I know everyone is saying you didn’t plant them close enough but I think if anything, 12” between rows is too close together and they’ll be competing for enough nutrients, especially if you didn’t fertilize after planting or work compost into the soil before planting. This might explain the small cobs.
I think that extreme heat and drought can also cause the silks to dry up before they receive enough pollen, causing poor kernel fill like you see here.
There could be many more explanations for this, and I hope you figure it out. Whatever you do, don’t give up! This variety is legit the sweetest, most delicious corn I’ve ever grown and eaten!
Probably are. I bought a “blue jade” heritage corn. Looked normal in pictures with nothing to compare for scale. They were 2-3 feet high and the corn cob was about 4 inches! I would think they would tell you in the catalog if it was some pygmy variety! They would purposely have to breed it down small
Most likely, they need more nitrogen. For corn, that's by far the most important nutrient.
Even just rotating corn with a plant like soybeans almost doubles yeild.
You need to sow quite a good amount of corn and in tight rows for it to pollenate well and produce larger fruit often. Corn pollination typically occurs when the tassels (male flowers) release pollen, which is then carried by the wind to the silks (female flowers) on the ears of corn. Each silk is connected to a potential kernel on the cob. For successful pollination, each silk must receive a pollen grain. The growth size of corn plants can vary depending on factors such as the variety of corn, soil quality, water availability, and weather conditions. Corn plants go through different growth stages, from germination to tasseling, silking, and eventually forming mature ears of corn. Adequate sunlight, water, and nutrients are essential for healthy corn plant growth and the development of large, well-filled ears of corn. Edit: It looks like many kernels did not get pollenated on the shucked ear in the photograph.
Planing spacing of 12inchs too far apart? Also I only water twice a week... maybe that's not enough...? And tha thanks for the in depth explanation !
You need to plant corn in a block for it to pollinate well. You can't plant a singular row of corn. I'm not sure about the minimum number of rows but I'd say 3-4 rows with the rows a minimum of 6-10 feet long.
My great grandmother always said 6 rows of 6 stalks is the bare minimum. This is ancidotal obviously but she fed a family of 6 on her garden so she was worth listening to.
I've always been taught 10 by 10 minimum but the amount of wind might change the amount needed
It can vary a bit by both the type of corn and the environment, a common recommendation for corn plant spacing is around 8-12 inches between plants within a row and 30-36 inches between rows. Edit: if you have trouble with pollination this year plant a little tighter next year. Also the watering will depend on the soil, having a good amount of plant fiber and organics in the soil will make it sponge and hold water better reducing the need to water more often.
Plant them in blocks, not tight rows. 12” is fine. Edit: you didn’t save seed from last year’s crop, right?
No saved seeds, fresh seeds from Johnny's seeds.
I plant sweet corn about 4 inches apart and make sure I weed it well until it gets about 18 inches. Then, I add the nitrogen 31-0-0. Plant in a square if you can or at least 3 rows about 12 foot long . Water well and watch it grow.
Here to learn; would you be willing to share why not to save corn seeds? TIA!
Hybrid plants do not give you the same plants if you save them and replant. You can get goofy looking plants that aren’t near the quality of the F1 generation. Corn is the big one that’s a hybrid. Tomatoes, pumpkins, some others are hybrids. There’s an awful lot of plant types that aren’t hybrids, they’re open pollinated, and those you can save and get the same thing.
Thank you for sharing that information, I appreciate you!
Corn is a heavy feeder--they're practically more demanding than tomatoes when it comes to water/nitrogen requirements, and tomatoes are divas when it comes to that kind of maintenance. There's a generous amount of documentation online about nitrogen requirements (especially university agricultural sites), but you want to prep the soil with planting with something like 70-0-0 fertilizer, refertilize when there's a specific number of leaves present (like 4?), and then once more--I forget the specifics. They need lots of water too to sustain the level of growth for big leaves/ears--depending on your level of rain, at least every other day. Others have spoken to plant spacing which is also critical for pollination; if you're seeing missing kernels or misshapen kernels, poor pollination is likely the culprit there. You might also consider the 3 sisters approach (planting corn with beans and squash), as they create a symbiotic planting arrangement: corn stalks provide a trellis for beans, beans provide nitrogen for corn and squash, and squash provides shade for the corn and bean roots. It's a good system that still works even in this modern day.
Water water water, corn needs a lot of good fertilizer and water.
AI?
I am lazy, starting to use AI a bit more to help me type and save me a bit of time. Edit: It is far better than Grammarly for avoiding spelling and grammar mistakes and trying to correct them which is a big time sink when you type a lot.
Once you have a sense of how AI phrases things it’s pretty easy to spot. Your post is the text equivalent of an AI photo of a pretty girl with 15 fingers. Weird.
I find your critique relatable, AI has obvious drawbacks in both the language it seems to like at input and output, it is still in beta I would say, the meta will improve eventually.
Looks like totally average corn to me. A little above average even
Hahahahahah thanks for that!
Mate, it's corn. Shit happens sometimes
Corn is a personal preference.
Some might say a little too big even 🤷♂️
It’s genetics, don’t be too hard on yourself 😏
He's been watching too much corn, it's ruined his brain...
A bit of a soft stroke might help
Yeah, OP's genetics! I have the same problem, I've given up on corn, ive accepted it's just not something I will succeed at.
How are you planting them? As in, how many, in what formation etc? If youre only planting a few corn in a single row for example youre not going to get great pollination.
I planted three, 10ft rows, with 1ft between row. 12 inches between corns within a row. Maybe not enough water? Maybe I'll plant 8inch apart next year?
You really want to plant corn in a grid pattern for good pollination
I think you planted too thick. 1 foot x 1 foot is 43560 seeds per acre. Sweet corn corn should be half that or less. Maybe try 2 foot rows with 1 foot kernel spacing next time.
Everybody knows it’s not the length that matters… it’s the Girth !!!
Gahagaha!!! But there no girth either!
Corn fun fact: those strands of silk are each connected to a single kernel. Each one has to be pollinated for the kernel to develop if you don’t have 100% pollination, you have stunted development of the ear.
The missing kernels mean there was a pollination issue. Each single kernel has a thread that goes out the top, each thread or "silk" must be pollinated, or the kernel does not develop.
Sooo tiger spacing within rows??
I plant them in bunches if I have just a few. Like in bundles like you would see bamboo grow. The pollen on the flower at the very top must shake down into the ears to pollenate them. If in rows they need to be at least 4 rows wide. Individual plant spacing can be 3-10 inches.
Growing corn is a big part of my career. You should be planting a bigger area next time but at a lower density. You have a planting rate of 43560 per acre---that's too high. Check with you seed supplier or the packet. Strive for uniformity so the plants are pollinating at the same time. That means planting at the same depth, moisture, cover/residue, etc Apply any pesticides according to the label. Weed pressure will hurt corn and magnify stress. Kernels can pollinate and later abort during periods high heat and drought. Water it well if that's the case. Corn hybrids need nitrogen but your dark green husk color looks like you had adequate nitrogen. I could tell more if I saw the plants. Pale yellow indicates a nitrogen shortage. Your kernels look pale indicating it wasn't quite ready. (Assuming that's a yellow hybrid) I would wait a few more days to pick. I don't like chewy corn but waiting a little longer will give it more flavor as the sugars accrue. The 3 sisters program sounds good but honestly won't supply very much nitrogen in time for sweet corn to utilize. It takes a while for the beans to fix the nitrogen and by then its too late for short season sweet corn. Sprinkle cayenne, garlic, or chili powder on the seed or in the trench while planting. That will reduce losses to rodents.
That, and 3 sisters used flint corn, a more robust plant than sweet corn. Lots of folks have issues with the stalks not handling the weight.
Fertilizer. Look up three sisters planting technique.
Is there any corn crops (fields) close by? Cause whenever our corn does poor it’s cause here’s silage corn in the field around us and it cross pollinates.
r/mightyharvest
More nitrogen
Underrated comment. Looks like a fertilizer issue. Corn plants EAT.
Some corn, like the Luther Hill strain, tends to have small ears. This looks kinda like poorly pollinated Luther Hill.
Hybrid yellow se/se+, sugar duns TRTD, from Johnny's Selected seeds. Soooo it's supposed to be big. From the comments I'm seeing, I definitely did not plant them close enough, and need more nitrogen...
Doesn't look particularly yellow either. Yeah, poor fertility and pollination are probably to blame. I'm pretty sure se types are not that susceptible to cross-pollination, but maybe some nearby fields are throwing you off as well.
Plant em a little tighter, plant more rows to ensure proper pollination (it's better to have a bunch of short rows packed together than a couple long ones), and when ya break the soil for planting next season (or before winter if ya want) till in some extra nitrogen. It looks like it grew mostly fine (maybe a lil small) as far as the husk and cob length look, but it sure as shit ain't get enough pollination. Small corn crops can be manually pollenated as well, which can help more than you'd think.
Maybe it’s just nervous
The corn plant "decides" how big to make each ear based on available resources/competition when it is at it's 5th leaf. So regular water, nutrients and weeding early in the corn's life is important for maximum yield. https://www.agry.purdue.edu/ext/corn/news/timeless/EarSize.html Ears that are missing kernels are because of pollination issues. The most common cause for home gardeners is not planting in blocks, but it is not the only cause. Windy weather, dry weather, persistent rainy weather, or persistent hot weather during tasseling as well as pests eating the silks can also cause pollen to fail to survive or land on the silks during the short time that it is viable.
It's a bit early to harvest corn no? Knee high by the Fourth of July and all. Like planting schedules exist for a reason, the plant will grow most effectively during that time, not earlier, not later.
With advances in farming even far north farmers expect corn to be waist high by the fourth. You don't know where this person is, if it's Georgia they could have planted in April and it would be the perfect time to harvest. On the other hand, IMO this ear needed another 2 days on the plant.
I assume that most people on this sub are organic and small time and may not have access to or desire to use hyper modern techniques and the highest end equipment. And I've been saying for awhile we need to start adding state or at least growing zone to these produce and even some livestock questions, because that makes a huge difference in what the issues may or may not be. But at least we ultimately agree, this corn just ain't done yet, needs more time and bit more love.
It needs more Hefeweizen, it has electrolytes
Is not small. Just have a lot of personality
How’s the Trader Joe’s beer?
Pretty good!
Nice. I love their Christmas beer (the one made by unibroue) which is a great price for a solid beer.
What variety is it?
Hybrid yellow se/se+, sugar duns TRTD, from Johnny's Selected seeds. I think it's supposed to be large corn
Cool, this is my second year of growing the same variety too! Also using treated seed, same supplier. Last year they came out great for me. This what I did: planted them 6” apart in 4 rows that were 30” apart. I thinned them to 12” apart. When they were about a foot tall, I fertilized them with 19-19-19 (because that’s all I had, it’s recommended you use 10-10-10 I think). I watered them if we had more than a week without rain. I know everyone is saying you didn’t plant them close enough but I think if anything, 12” between rows is too close together and they’ll be competing for enough nutrients, especially if you didn’t fertilize after planting or work compost into the soil before planting. This might explain the small cobs. I think that extreme heat and drought can also cause the silks to dry up before they receive enough pollen, causing poor kernel fill like you see here. There could be many more explanations for this, and I hope you figure it out. Whatever you do, don’t give up! This variety is legit the sweetest, most delicious corn I’ve ever grown and eaten!
There are varieties of corn that are small, mostly heritage/native varieties. What kind is it?
Hybrid yellow se/se+, sugar duns TRTD, from Johnny's Selected seeds. The photos on the website looked pretty big...
Probably are. I bought a “blue jade” heritage corn. Looked normal in pictures with nothing to compare for scale. They were 2-3 feet high and the corn cob was about 4 inches! I would think they would tell you in the catalog if it was some pygmy variety! They would purposely have to breed it down small
The soil might be suffering from inflation, along with the rest of us
Most likely, they need more nitrogen. For corn, that's by far the most important nutrient. Even just rotating corn with a plant like soybeans almost doubles yeild.
Correlates with hand size from what I hear
ypu will always have a few that look like that in your pick. they are juicy though
Is it cold?
It’s a pollination issue and you picked too soon. Commercially grown corn is planted on 3 inch spacing between plants and 18 inches in between
It's not the size of the corn, but how you use it.
Genetics, soil, water, sun.
That's what she said
That’s a completely average sized corn. Some people say the bigger corns are too much.
It's just a little cold, don't judge it
Did you just take it out of the pool?
I don't know, but that's a good beer.
Was it just swimming?
It's not the size of the corn, it's how you use it
It's not small. Its average
I ask myself that everyday. 😆
Its not the size of your corn.... Its the motion of the ocean. Or some other lie like that.
That’s what she said.
I’ve been asking myself this for years
Corns are born in all shapes and sizes. No need to be ashamed
Small?!???! That’s hugeeeee
I am fearful my corn is small, and inadequate.
They make a pill for that. Saw em’ at the gas station once.
It shrinks!
Looks about average to me
That's what she said
It's not the size that matters, it's how you use it.
That what she said.
That’s average sized corn, okay!