[MyAchingBack]

What is the best spacing when planting out sweetcorn? One website I was reading mentioned 48cm blocks, another mentioned 35cm apart with 60cm between rows. As they need to pollinate wouldn’t 35cm blocks be better?

[GrannieAnnie]

Traditional spacing is 18 ins between plants and 2ft between rows.  Mine this year as I only have 17 plants that survived are 16 inches each way.  Sorry, brain working in imperial today! 

Mind you, there are some on here who do a smaller spacing and still get good cobs.

[MyAchingBack]

Traditional spacing is 18 ins between plants and 2ft between rows.  Mine this year as I only have 17 plants that survived are 16 inches each way.  Sorry, brain working in imperial today! 

Mind you, there are some on here who do a smaller spacing and still get good cobs.

That's what I don't understand. Why can't the spacing be equal (18 inches x 18 inches)?

[GrannieAnnie]

I think you'll find they quote most 'rows' as being bigger than the spacing between actualy plants, not sure if that's more to give you room to walk in between them!  But spacing in the end is up to you. 

Like I said, mine are 16 inches both ways this year.  One of our members has put his at 6 inches, just hope that works for him.

[Trillium]

Traditionally corn should be planted in 'blocks', meaning that 4 rows should be planted reasonably close so they can be wind pollinated. You can do more rows closely planted but you might find it difficult to get in for picking or weeding unless you've seeded in succession (eg planted a few seeds one week, then more seed about 2 weeks later, then more seed...)

Grannie Annie likes to play it safe  and plant in traditional spacings but I plant mine about 6-8" apart with about 4-5 rows also spaced 6-8" . To do this, you must have well enriched soil as corn is a heavy feeder.

[simonwatson]

Mine are planted in 12" blocks in a well manured bed. Last year I grew 4 or 5 to a 20L pot, which is about 5" apart in a star formation. They did great. I fed and watered them as if they were tomatoes and got 2 cobs of most of the plants.

[GrannieAnnie]

Grannie Annie likes to play it safe  and plant in traditional spacings but I plant mine about 6-8" apart with about 4-5 rows also spaced 6-8" . To do this, you must have well enriched soil as corn is a heavy feeder.

You know me too well Trillium!!   

[mumofstig]

on my sandy soil the closest that seems to work is about 15in each way like this 

x    x    x
  x    x    x
x    x    x

[lmpd]

I go for blocks about 10"x10" apart and always had good results........ironically I can't stand the stuff , I just do it for the family!!!

[MyAchingBack]

I'm thinking that with a straight back and my tummy held in I should just about be able to get between blocks of 18 inches x 18 inches.

[MyAchingBack]

Can I plant in rows of 3 or is it best rows of 4?

[mumofstig]

doesn't matter, just not in single lines 

[Headgardener22]

I always plant mine about 12 - 15 inches apart in all directions. My beds are about 6ft wide so I get 5 or 6 plants across a bed. However, unless the weather improves, it ain't going to make a lot of difference this year, I remember seeing once upon a time that sweetcorn needs 100 days of sun to ripen (I know there are earlier ripening varieties now but they do need sun to ripen).

[Trillium]

It's the heat units that sun creates that corn needs to ripen. Farmers usually go with a variety that requires the amount of heat units their area will normally get rather than going with a variety that is in demand but requires more heat than their area normally expects.

If you have clayish or loamy soil, you can plant a lot closer together, but if you have sandy stuff like Jay of MoS have, then you'd need to space them out a bit for less food competition.

[annie b]

I   One of our members has put his at 6 inches, just hope that works for him.

QWell if you're still talking about sweetcorn, I hope it does too...because mine are very closely spaced this year too!

PS do forgive darlings for lowering the tone but grannie annie did make me snigger....