[mumofstig]

(Paths not included).

  ...............

[Dabhand]

So...... once chitted and grown on, at what point are they planted out in their blocks? How tall do they need to reach before they go outside etc?

[JayG]

So...... once chitted and grown on, at what point are they planted out in their blocks? How tall do they need to reach before they go outside etc?

Sweetcorn don't like having their roots disturbed, and need warmth (night and day.)

The ideal time is therefore when the roots are starting to grow through or out of their pots, and the outside temperatures are much higher than they have been recently (but better things promised soon!).

The height of the plants doesn't really matter, but don't forget to harden them off before planting outside! 

[DD.]

After chitting another 30 sweetcorn they all sprouted   i then popped them all into a old fish polystyrene fish box (big) to grow on for a few weeks more   the fish box`s dont half keep the heat into the compost due to the polystyrene  

Are they all together in one mass in this box, or in seperate pots?

If they are in one mass, they're not going to like you at planting out time.

[DD.]

So...... once chitted and grown on, at what point are they planted out in their blocks? How tall do they need to reach before they go outside etc?

Sweetcorn don't like having their roots disturbed, and need warmth (night and day.)

The ideal time is therefore when the roots are starting to grow through or out of their pots, and the outside temperatures are much higher than they have been recently (but better things promised soon!).

The height of the plants doesn't really matter, but don't forget to harden them off before planting outside! 

And whatever degradable pots you've used, make sure they are completely buried. If you leave a bit sticking out, it will act like a wick & draw off a lot of moisture.

[PennyS]

And whatever degradable pots you've used, make sure they are completely buried. If you leave a bit sticking out, it will act like a wick & draw off a lot of moisture.

I didn't realise that... thanks.  I've got quite a lot of stuff growing in paper pots this year - including my sweetcorn -  so I'll remember that.

[Dabhand]

Thanks guys,  good advice,  I have them in plastic cells (Fairly deep  ) so I will have to knock them out to plant them.  I will just have to be careful and take a chance with them this year and then next year I will take on board all the advice I've read so far...

[DD.]

Cells are not too bad. It's if you grow a lot in one tray that you get the root disturbance.

[Zippy]

I have to put my hands up and say I think I will be chitting my sweetcorn (and possibly a good few more that are unrelaible germinators) rather than sowing into pots.

Luckily, I already have 10 plants growing nicely and with only two from the batch which didn't germinate so I am ok this year. However, a second batch sown in watered compost and taken indoors closed in a poly bag did not germinate for about three weeks so I turned them out to investigate. Every one had swelled up but then turned brown and not germinated at all. I think too much water in the compost and they were rotting.

Chitting in a jam jar until sprouting would have avoided this I think and obviously you would only choose the ones which had sprouted.

I do this with sprouting seeds for eating anyway so it is just an extension of what I do anyway.

Put in a jam jar of water on night one overnight, drain off the water and leave with the lid screwed down, then rinse and drain each day until the seeds sprout; smaller seeds on kitchen towel and wet them with a water mister to prevent seed losses through rinsing.