[Abunndance]

I am growing sweet corn and ornamental corn.  Both just went into tassel.  They are only about two and a half feet tall.  The plants looks very healthy, but what's with the tassels so early??

[Yorkie]

Mine's even shorter and one has just produced tassels. I think it's quite likely to be related to the very hot dry weather

[Subversive_plot]

Typically, at roughly development of the 10th leaf (vegetative V10 stage), corn will start to develop tassels, and also "ear shoots" (on the sides; the higher ones up could develop into ears of corn).

The corn will continue to grow taller, and after V14 (14th leaf), will transition into the reproductive (R) stage. At the terminal vegetative (VT) stage, the tassels will be fully extended and all of the leaves that the plant will grow will be visible.

The first (R1) reproductive stage is when the silk starts emerging from the husks of the ear shoots.  Hopefully by then the tassels you have are producing their pollen!  Sweet corn is harvested at the R3 "milk stage", when fluids in the kernels have a milky texture.

My guess is that your corn is now somewhere from V10 to V14 in development, and will get taller.

I don't know how hot or dry it's been for your corn.  If you are seeing very healthy plants, I still suspect there is some growing that will happen.  Lack of water could certainly stunt corn, but I think that would not look like a healthy plant.  Hot is sort of relative; many corn-producing regions routinely reach daytime high temperatures of 27 C to 33 C in June.  If there are corn varieties adapted to cooler climates, and that is what you are growing, those varieties could react to temperature differently.

[Grubbypaws]

Mine's even shorter and one has just produced tassels. I think it's quite likely to be related to the very hot dry weather

Yes I think that it has been an odd year. My jazzy potatoes have given up the ghost for the first time ever and my perpetual spinach (chard) whose seed packet states that it never goes to seed in the first year has gone to seed before producing anything to harvest!

[Yorkie]

Typically, at roughly development of the 10th leaf (vegetative V10 stage), corn will start to develop tassels, and also "ear shoots" (on the sides; the higher ones up could develop into ears of corn).

I only have about 5 leaves ... oh well!

[Subversive_plot]

Typically, at roughly development of the 10th leaf (vegetative V10 stage), corn will start to develop tassels, and also "ear shoots" (on the sides; the higher ones up could develop into ears of corn).

I only have about 5 leaves ... oh well!

Yeah, that "typical" growth I mentioned might not be what you are getting, though the "10" does include the tiny leaves that often fade through the season. I saw that you noted hot and dry conditions, which could cause problems. I was not sure what conditions Abunndance was observing, not knowing how close (s)he is to where you are and if the weather was different (I'd still get failing marks for my knowledge of UK geography).  Here, I know some places less than 50 miles from me have had normal rainfall, while we had only 1.5 inches last month (about 1/3 our usual for June).  Of course the whole state of Georgia is hot, but I knew the job was dangerous when I took it.

If you and Abunndance keep this thread updated, I will be curious what happens with your corn and whether it yields anything.

Good luck to both of you, I hope you get some good ears yet!

[steven c]

we are growing swift at home and northern at the plot both are showing tassles aleady swift about 18inch high did this last year as well but went on to produce great corn so keeping fingers crossed cant do much else.