[rich24uk]

The damned things simply are not playing ball! I'd planted some out about 3 weeks ago and most have seemingly taken to the soil but they don't appear to have grown much at all (maybe an inch at most). Is that normal???

Also I've had a few that have died (cat probably sat on them), is there anywhere locally that I might be able to source some plant from at this time of the year? I don't have any seed left and didn't provision any spares. Doh!

[Beetroot queen]

Mine have been in for weeks and weeks and weeks and they are no more than 4 inches  i have left them to it but i am tempted to give up with them this year 

[AnneB]

I treat sweetcorn as a small luxury experiment.  This is my fourth year of trying.  I have only succeeded in getting what looked like mini sweetcorn that I used in  a couple of stir fries last year.   Trying a new variety this year, Double Standard, supposed to be suited to the more cold marginal areas of the UK.   Mine are about 6 inches tall so far, so they had better get a spurt on too!

[Godhelm]

I grew some "Incredible F1" from seed and planted out at allotment a few weeks back but lost patience with them this weekend and have pulled those that have not collapsed out. I've ordered some plants (Mirai Picnic) from Marshalls to try again. I decided that I had been too keen with first putting plants outside and then planting at allotment. Nights were still quite cold even if not frosty. Hopefully new plants planted out in warmer weather will do better. Homebase also had plants and quite a lot cheaper than Marshalls, but still quite small.

[Totty]

You don't tend to see them growing up too much until they all start thickening up, then hey shoot up. I still think the key to them is sowing early under cover. I'll sow one chitted seed per 4 inch pot, around mid march, then pot them on as soon as the roots start following the shape of the pot. They dislike being root bound at all. Another sowing in mid to late April gives longer cropping and I think the bigger plants get going quicker. A few of the earlier ones have a couple of side shoots forming now and looking good.

Totty

[Lincolnshire Floyd]

The damned things simply are not playing ball! I'd planted some out about 3 weeks ago and most have seemingly taken to the soil but they don't appear to have grown much at all (maybe an inch at most). Is that normal???

Also I've had a few that have died (cat probably sat on them), is there anywhere locally that I might be able to source some plant from at this time of the year? I don't have any seed left and didn't provision any spares. Doh!

This happened last year with me as well but when the weather warmed up as it always does then they really take off and give a decent crop if not a spectacular one. This year looks to be the same.

[Goosegirl]

As I have put on here before, I have never had such a good crop of fully-pollinated sweet corn as when I planted them in my greenhouse bed last year as an experiement. They were under-cropped with dwarf French beans which I always grow in there as they also crop so much better. All you need to do it to tap the stalks every day with a cane whilst holding your breath, then shake yourself to remove any remaining said pollen, then get the pan on!

[rich24uk]

Thanks for all of the advice, will stick it out with them and see what happens

Any ideas on whether garden centres are likely to be stocking spare plants at the moment? Need to replace one or two and don't have any seed.

[vanessa.xx]

I saw some at my local homebase over the weekend do maybe you could try there or I just had a sale email from unwins and they have mirai picnic sweetcorn plants buy one get one free at the moment £5.95 for 2x16 plants

[Sue33]

haven't put my sweetcorn in yet, still sitting in the potting shed  probably go in end of the month.

whereabouts in Essex are you?  They usually do lots of veggie plants in our local garden centre in Grays if you're this way.

[rich24uk]

I'm in Southend so a bit far will have to have a look round homebase, B&Q were useless.

[Sue33]

Hubby says he saw some good looking ones in homebase 

[stainesbloke]

Home base definitely have some nice plants in. My sweetcorn also not growing much vertically, just thickening up. I reckon it's because it's been so chilly, sweetcorn needs heat, but it's my first year growing it properly so I don't really know lol

[gavinjconway]

I'm short of 33 plants so I planted in my heated prop 10 days ago.. they are now 3" high and will be planted in another 10 days.. Still time to do more...

[sunshineband]

The plants I planted out under a debris netting cover to keep the wind off them are now a foot high, but..... only seven out of twenty have actually survived.

I have some others bought on ebay, which are four inches tall and looking healthy, and here comes another but..... I shall have to move the first 7 to replant in a block as they are quite a long way apart now, and then plant the new ones in their place, together with the squashes, which are at last big enough to brave the plot. The original 7 have to be away from the new ones

{{{{{sigh}}}}}} not quite sure where to put them tbh