Has everyone else got theirs out?? I put mine out yesterday, aabout 40-45 plants (bit short lol). But I couldnt fit many squashes in!! I stuck in 2 melons and 1 mound of butternut seed. BTW can I plant squashes around my toms??> because I spaces those 2.5ft rows and about 20inchs apart...
Anyways some pics - I like pics lol.
Corn in the tray - you can see why I am planting it out!!!
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ken_claire/big%20corns.JPG)
nicely developed root system I thought!!
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ken_claire/corn%20roots.JPG)
One of my melons - think this was a fastbreak.
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ken_claire/melon.JPG)
And finish product. I know its weedy. Its mostly clay underneath (except about 1/3) so it has a mulch on top. 5 rows of corn, 15" apart each way.
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ken_claire/corn%20all%20done.JPG)
Hope nobody minds the pics :)
ken
Very nice too.Keep them coming we all like plenty piccies. ::) 8) :o :D :D
Got mine out yesterday too Kingkano. Poor things had very cramped feet in their 2 inch pots too. Interplanted with some squashs( thanks Multi Veg) and a couple of butternut squashes that I have grown from the seed of a shop bought one. Dont know how well they will do though because I had only just finished riddling that bed about 1/2 hour before the things went in.
Put mine out on Thursday (day before yesterday!), same as you KK they were gettin big (about 7"-12") tho they were in bigger pots I think. They were still standing yesterday and today it is pouring rain at last so it should be kill or cure. Anyone know a sun dance? Don;t suppose the "first people" had need of that just their rain dances.
I haven't planted anything round their feet tho it sounds lovely. Maybe that was done to conserve moisture in dry soil, so hoping our climate doesn't need that. First time so it's a 'learning curve'.
First time veggie growing for me too Wicker. Steeeeeep learning curve hey. I planted squash at the base of the sweetcorn because I think it will conserve moisture and also because having to plant so far apart there is an awful lot of waste space underneath the plants. Think that the method called 3 sisters That I read about in a thread somewhere here also says to grow runner beans up the sweetcorn too. Have just planted the seeds for the beans so will give it a go. Will let you know how I get on.
You can try beans. I think the problem tho, will be the Indians used bigger corn than we grow here, and it could support beans. I cant see our corn growing tall enough or strong enough to take it. Dwarf beans would be a good bet tho ;) I am gonna try some - I just havent got to putting them down yet lol.
Another winner is sunflowers. Stuck in there somewhere, they supposedly supplement the corn too. Definitely trying that!!
Glad to see lots of us upto the same point then :)
Hmmmm just rethought that then. Where my plot is it is very windy so perhaps you are right and I am best not to bother growing it up the corn..Back to plan B :D
I would like to correct my mother Mimi, I grew the butternut squashes from the seeds of a shop bought one not you!!!
Bex
OOOOOOOOO kids they wont let you get away with anything. ::)
Ok I grew the little white ones that I got from Multi Veg and YOU grew the butternut. Is that O.K. ???
Our corn went out on Monday (24th) and I have dotted various squashes around the bases in piles of poo. ;D
My sweet corn went out about a fortnight ago and is now over two feet tall. It is growing well from the bottom and is the first time I have grown them
If I get time mine's going out tomorrow or monday. Failing that it will be next weekend, but they're in 6" pots so shouldnt' be too much problem with that.
One didn't germinate, and I put another seed in a couple of weeks ago - was waiting and hoping that one would show, but no joy so I'll abandon hope of a full complement.
Been reading with interest here about the complementary three crop system. I've got beans up poles elsewhere on the plot, so don't need to grow those up the corn, but I may well plant the courgettes underneath them - they'll be fine there, won't they?
Sure will RIchard - well this has been the assumption by most of us ::)
Well my sweetcorn survived the rain yesterday. they are standing proud, leaves blowing gently in the warm breeze today. Rain forecast for today didn't come so guess you msut all have been sun dancing last night ;D
Think I will try to get my sweetcorn planted out this coming weekend. Still trying to garden by moon, but am not really bothering about doing things at moonrise/set. Friday & Saturday coming are fruit/seed days...
Mine went out today ;D As I planted, I was imagining all that lovely corn...........spect the slugs were too >:(
Put most of my sweetcorn out a couple of weeks ago (blaze, and a mini-corn variety I can't remember). Then last week sowed runners and a nobbly cucumber variety between them. The las few stagglers of the corn that were a bit runtish a fortnight ago seemed to have done well in my greenhouse, so they went out today at the end of the rows. Probably got about 50 odd plants out there now, with the cucumbers coming up nicely.
Regards the runners growing up - it's an interesting point - I think you're probably right that the native americans had stronger corn varities. However, I think even UK varieties should be OK with runners going up them. I've planted one runner plant between every 2nd corn plant, with the idea of basically running a 'net' of runners across the rows. I'm hopoing this should add a bit of strength to the corns in case of high winds, and it's not going ot be a massive weight for the plants if spread between 2. An interesting experiment if nothing else :) I'll let you know how I get on...
incidentally, I like tyhe way the word filter makes k.n.o.b.b.l.y get changed to knobbly ;D
The beans best suited for the three sisters method are more likely to be the climbing french beans - not runners.
Whilst on the subject of things sweetcorn ... i have mulched mine with grass clippings? Good move or bad????????
well it's not going to do any harm, but grass clippings don't compost very well as they have very high silica levels.
Multi - Yeah, but I planted what I had from last year, and I had runners :)
This crooked picture shows my corn. Notice how low and scummy the water is in the small canal that borders the lottie, it has been so dry lately.
(http://img55.photobucket.com/albums/v168/fergina/volkstuin/DSC00007_corn_resize.jpg)
With no water on my allotment and approx 6" of thin soil on chalk, I wouldn't object to to scummy water that close to my corn!!!!!
Phil
In dry (despite a damp Tuesday) Hampshire
I agree Phil, Inas canal makes our stream look like a ditch in comparison!!
Also Ina, your corns look great! Mine are still quite small. I have never had any success with corn and it is begining to show! :'(
Am having a go at the 3 sisters plot too. But since I discovered heirlooms, I'm going to extremes. 8) Purple popcorn, with Cherokee Trail of Tears pole (climbing French) beans, and ground cover is being provided by some Red Warty Thing winter squash and a Black Beauty zucchini/courgette.
Yeah, yeah, I know, my garden is a gourmet restaurant for slugs.
Hi poledragon,i am also in the three sisters business.I have planted different kind of corn, tarbais a very old french type of runnerbean and a big unknown russian wintersquash.I hope everything works out well.
Got my sweetcorn and french beans planted out, and today, I will add some more of the third sister.
Our sweet corn were planted out a few weeks ago and the leaves now look yellowish. My husband says they don't like to be watered too much and will recover once we get the really hot established weather. I thought they needed quite a lot of water, so perhaps I have overwatered them. What does anyone think? :D Thanks, busy_lizzie
Same thing happened to mine after planting them out Liz and I started to worry, also thought it was due to watering too much. Now they are doing great as you can see on the picture so I think they'll get over it. I water them twice a week a good amount.
Sweetcorn will go also go yellow if it is too cold for them as their physiology is adapted for warm climates. They should recover when it warms up.
Your husband is correct about the water, corn doesn't need a lot of water and heavy watering may end up washing out the nitrogen to a point they cannot reach it (it has a very poor root system).
eer - I hope peas work as a 'third sister' as well as beans, as that's what I've planted!
Confused here!!!!
What's the three sister's method?
CC
The first sister is sweetcorn, the second is either beans or peas - something that can climb up the sweetcorn. The third sister is a trailing squash type thingy such as pumpkin that can wander through the sweetcorn, as these like a bit of shade, plus the leaves may act as a mulch conserving loss of water by evaporation from the soil.
Thanks John and Ina for your reassurance about my yellow leafed sweet corn. They already look a bit better and I have stopped watering them for the moment. :D busy_lizzie
We had our corn out about 4 weeks ago, and they have really started to come on. Growing nice and chunky.
One thing we have noticed is that a couple of them seem to be growing out of the ground!!
Sounds strange I know but its as if the main stem of the plant has lifted out of the ground and the roots are visible.....cant really explain it, but I was thinking would it be ok to kind of earth them up a bit so the root shoots weren't visible!
Hope someone understands....
Thanks
Les
Roots do appear just above the soil level as a matter of course - John will have a multisyllabic word for it!
Earthing up corn is a good thing to do it provides increased anchorage.
Thanks phil
Will earth up tonight, for a bit of stability.
Les
PS - still waiting for John to come up with his big words!!!! It is only Monday though he won't have gotten warmed up yet!
or even out of bed it only being lunchtime!!
LOL with Phil.. :) :D :) :D :) :D :) :D