After planting out my Sweetcorn plants in the next couple of weeks would a dressing of fertiliser be ok because the ground they are going in does not seem to have been manured in the last couple of years :)
i'm in the same situation, with the sweetcorn having to go in the worst bit of the plot. Sweetcorn is about the most fertiliser hungry crop there is - so yes. Lots of lime too, if you can
RT,
any suggestions on what levels of lime should I apply to the sweetcorn, I have plenty of granulated chicken manure?
just checked about lime and sweetcorn, and my book says soil should ideally be slightly acid, so perhaps forget about the lime. I've never used chicken manure, so I don't know about that (either)
We don't lime ours.. but rake in some growmore to start off. Then they might get fed with Urea to get them growing and seaweed later on... :-\
Last year but one, (last year was wet the one before dry) a fellow allotment holder watered a weak solution of growmore on to their sweetcorn every day. (half a teaspoon in a one and a half gallon can) The plants grew to giant proportions and looked wonderful. The corn harvested was bigger than the ones which were just given plain tap water and a feed once a week.
No lime was used.
Both were bigger than those which had been given no fertiliser at all.
It was not a proper scientific experiment, the varieties differed and the soil quality would not have been totally identical.
Quote from: Mr Smith on May 24, 2008, 07:19:02
After planting out my Sweetcorn plants in the next couple of weeks would a dressing of fertiliser be OK because the ground they are going in does not seem to have been manured in the last couple of years :)
Sweetcorn are what i call gobblers they will take all the feed and water you can give them.
This is no recommendation but its what i do and it works. I put a ring of Growmore, Calcified Plus or Fish Blood and Bone and Organic Manure IE Rooster, Chicken Manure around each plant so it feeds directly down onto the roots.
I put some of the organic manure into a water barrel for watering the plants as there is no goodness in tap water.
If the soil is dry they get a drink every day to keep the soil moist and a liquid feed from the barrel once a week. The next thing is to give them a mid season feed, i just give the ground a top dressing of Organic Manure and Growmore.
Sweetcorn is `hungry` so feed if in doubt. And when you start to see the `hen`s foot` root system earth them up -Mr Flowerdew gave this tip some years ago and it does help
All this talk of being fed, I'll think I will come as a Sweetcorn plant :) ;D
As a general rule; I never feed anything again after the initial feed they get when I prepare the ground for the plants,
The exceptions are things over wintered outdoors e.g. Jap onions, garlic and spring greens.
In most cases this is a nitrogen feed kick start them into growth
Basically I only feed stuff under glass e.g tomatoes!
Have done this for years and I am quite happy with the results I get!
Apart from the expense, I find that by feeding somethings they can become too lush, which (in my opinion) I think makes them more prone to attack from pests & diseases.
Grow them hard is my motto!
I planted my sweetcorn out last night in my old strawberry bed, which was filled with the year before last's Christmas tree shreddings. I thought I would give this a go as if the strawberries (which are just in flower) do not do so well they are due to be culled anyway, so I will remove them and let the sweetcorn have a bit more room. The soil should be on the acid side from the pine needles, so I'll let you know how they both do..... ;D
I usually feed everything with Seasol (liquid Seaweed). and the odd handfull of pelleted chicken manure if they need a boost.