Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: min200 on February 03, 2011, 12:37

Title: When to sow corn?
Post by: min200 on February 03, 2011, 12:37

When do you sow corn?  Not sweetcorn the type you use for bread etc?  I am going to sow a large patch with it this year as an experiment to give the chickens the corn heads and the rabbits the straw or use it on the run floor etc?

I have a large sack of it here but no idea when to sow it!!

Title: Re: When to sow corn?
Post by: robbodaveuk on February 03, 2011, 14:02

Quote from: min200 on February 03, 2011, 12:37

When do you sow corn?  Not sweetcorn

????? There is only one kind of corn that I know of and that is sweetcorn (maize).

  Robbo.

Title: Re: When to sow corn?
Post by: min200 on February 03, 2011, 14:03

Ok then its probably wheat!  Just been given a sack of it.   Nothing on the sack itself though.  Its the same as the "corn" you give to chickens as a treat.

Title: Re: When to sow corn?
Post by: paintedlady on February 03, 2011, 14:06

field corn and sweetcorn are basically the same thing - obviously variety makes some cobs taste sweeter, but even a supersweet variety cob will lose its sugar content as the corn ages.  The difference is that field corn will also grow quite tall (if you've never seen a field full of corn before) and also have much broader leaves.  The cobs are harvested after  the kernels lose water and tenderness, so that means they will have a much longer season and be harvested much later.

So, to sow corn -  I've seen farmers lay black plastic sheeting in fields in mid April-ish (sorry, can't remember when exactly) with sowing holes where the seed is dropped - the black plastic helps to warm up the soil during the day, and slowly releases the heat at night which would be helpful for earlier sowings when frosts are still a problem.  I'm sure the corn was sown a bit earlier than garden sweetcorn ... perhaps they a bit hardier and can take the odd frost?  I sow my sweetcorn about mid-late April-early May-ish indoors depending on the weather.

Title: Re: When to sow corn?
Post by: DD. on February 03, 2011, 14:08

I think paintedlady has missed the point!

min - I think this is what you want, it says usually March:

http://www.brockwell-bake.org.uk/plant_wheat_teachers.pdf

Title: Re: When to sow corn?
Post by: min200 on February 03, 2011, 14:14

Thanks for all the replies!

DD you have hit the nail on the head yet again mate.  I really dont know what I would do without you lot! :D :D :D