Topic: When do you start off your first batch of sweet corn?

[jesssands]

I have separated the ones in the pot. They came appart very easily, altho did have a very long root.
Just got wait and see now; whether I damaged any .. dont think I did.. was very careful!
If they are all ok, I have 16. So would I plant these 4 x 4?
And how far appart? And I have also put in 4 butternut squash seed today, if I can get a couple of these to take again (hubby had accident today; tipped up b.squash and killed them) How would you plant 2 in amongst the sweetcorns?

Hoping one of you clever people can kinda draw me a picture so I can get it in my head... lol !!!
 ;D  :o  ;D

[manicscousers]

Ours are up, in the cold poly and will go out in a fortnight, under cover and under bottle cloches inside  :)

[chriscross1966]

4x4 is a bot of a small block... you don't need the monster fields I plant but I'd feel a lot happier with 8 or 10 more plants in that block....

[jesssands]

We dont have that much space, only a small patch here. how far appart should they be then?

[chriscross1966]

Depending on variety somewhere around 8" (dwarf plants, only likely to get one cob per) to 14" (biggish plants, expecting two cobs) apart on a staggered grid (Layout an equilateral triangle at the distance adn expand from there.....)

[jesssands]

just looked the variety is called "conquest"

Thanx

[star]

I sowed mine yesterday in loo rolls, they are in the propagator now. So...hopefully we will get the really cold weather out of the way before they need planting out ::)

[glensman]

I have separated the ones in the pot. They came appart very easily, altho did have a very long root.
Just got wait and see now; whether I damaged any .. dont think I did.. was very careful!
If they are all ok, I have 16. So would I plant these 4 x 4?
And how far appart? And I have also put in 4 butternut squash seed today, if I can get a couple of these to take again (hubby had accident today; tipped up b.squash and killed them) How would you plant 2 in amongst the sweetcorns?

Hoping one of you clever people can kinda draw me a picture so I can get it in my head... lol !!!
 ;D  :o  ;D

Not sure if this addresses the question you are asking but I have used the Three Sisters approach devised by native Americans for growing beans, sweetcorn and courgettes/ squash. It works very well and the separate plant species enhance the values of the other two (nitrogen, weed suppression etc, and the convex-topped mounds make sure water is concentrated where it is needed. The site below has a diagram showing layout, distances etc.

"Corn provides a natural pole for bean vines to climb. Beans fix nitrogen on their roots, improving the overall fertility of the plot by providing nitrogen to the following years corn. Bean vines also help stabilize the corn plants, making them less vulnerable to blowing over in the wind. Shallow-rooted squash vines become a living mulch, shading emerging weeds and preventing soil moisture from evaporating, thereby improving the overall crops chances of survival in dry years. Spiny squash plants also help discourage predators from approaching the corn and beans. The large amount of crop residue from this planting combination can be incorporated back into the soil at the end of the season, to build up the organic matter and improve its structure."

http://www.reneesgarden.com/articles/3sisters.html

[gavinjconway]

Thank for all the relies about loo rolls... I'll do them like tat this year as my first try at sweetcorn..

[Tasbound]

gavinjconway.. my honest answer is. I have never done it but I have pretty much tried everything over the years and my gut feeling says no..the roots will not just grow down and I don't think they would like it as the roots would be constricted very quickly. I have tried them in narrower pots and they didn't like it even though they were as tall as the usual 3 inch ones.. I like my corn to be filled right through to the tip and find if allowed to grow unrestricted I get that.

If pots are a problem, I would try plastic disposable beer containers. I am using them these days for all my transplants as they are only a fraction of what pots would be , they are designed to hold 18 fluid ounces, almost a pint, and they are quite tall. My tomatoes do very well in them as they hold more than the three inch pots .I get them in a huge bag from the North American equivalent of Macro, I get more than 200 for less than about 8 quid. I am sure they will have the same over there. The only down size is you have to put a drainage hole in them,, easy with sharp pointed scissors though.  Oh and I am using some for the third year so although disposable they don't need to be.

I  am sorry not to be able to give you an answer.

XX Jeannine

Hi Jeannine I've got a question on cross pollination, I'm planning on growing Swift and minipop this year do you know if they cross pollinate? If so I may have to have a rethink.

Many thanks

[cornykev]

I will be planting mine out soon, 1 foot apart in blocks.    :)

[realfood]

Not a good idea to plant swift and minipop together, unless you remove the male pollen tassels on the minipop plants before they open.
In any case you are supposed to pick the minipop before the female silks open.

[Jeannine]

Real food is right. if you are growing the mini pop toi have baby cobs then it is not a problem as you would not be allowing them to pollinate anyway.

XX Jeannine

[Tasbound]

Thanks both, I thought I could grow them but wasn't sure, as long as there harvested as mini corn which I was planning on.