[3759allen]

evening all.

i'm trying sweetcorn for the first year this year. i'm planning to mulch and let marrow's run around them to act as a weed suppressant. i'm liking the theory, but not sure how effective it will be.

anyway. when can i sow sweetcorn? and when can i sow marrows in comparison?

i'm concerned that if the marrows grow quicker than the corn that they will suffocate the corn.

any ideas and opinions.

thanks all.

[BabbyAnn]

evening all.

i'm trying sweetcorn for the first year this year. i'm planning to mulch and let marrow's run around them to act as a weed suppressant. i'm liking the theory, but not sure how effective it will be.

Not very effective at all - weeds just grow taller ....  Why not put a weed suppressant sheet down and plant both the sweetcorn and marrow through it - the black material/plastic will warm the soil and the plants will be happier for it.

As for sowing - too early and if we get a spell of cold weather later in May (a very high risk), you'll need to keep them indoors for longer which usually means the plants quickly outgrow their pots and get too big to safely handle later on.  If you plant out too soon, sweetcorn in particular can sulk after a cold snap and stop growing altogether even when conditions improve.  I aim for the latter end of April and better still if I can catch a spell of warm sunny spring weather for quick germination and strong sunlight to encourage good healthy growth.

With regards mixing the 2 together in a bed, why not plant the marrow on the edge rather than in the middle of the sweetcorn?  Personally I'd rather have dedicated beds for each of the crops but apparently it does work for some people.

[Mattgregory27]

I tried sweetcorn for the first time last year around this time and it sulked badly to start with. I will be sowing indoors in another 2 weeks and trying that this year.

[diospyros]

The instructions I have found say plant the squash when the sweetcorn is a foot high.

[radiohead]

evening all.

i'm trying sweetcorn for the first year this year. i'm planning to mulch and let marrow's run around them to act as a weed suppressant. i'm liking the theory, but not sure how effective it will be.

Not very effective at all - weeds just grow taller ....  Why not put a weed suppressant sheet down and plant both the sweetcorn and marrow through it - the black material/plastic will warm the soil and the plants will be happier for it.

As for sowing - too early and if we get a spell of cold weather later in May (a very high risk), you'll need to keep them indoors for longer which usually means the plants quickly outgrow their pots and get too big to safely handle later on.  If you plant out too soon, sweetcorn in particular can sulk after a cold snap and stop growing altogether even when conditions improve.  I aim for the latter end of April and better still if I can catch a spell of warm sunny spring weather for quick germination and strong sunlight to encourage good healthy growth.

With regards mixing the 2 together in a bed, why not plant the marrow on the edge rather than in the middle of the sweetcorn?  Personally I'd rather have dedicated beds for each of the crops but apparently it does work for some people.

I've grown squashes amongst sweetcorn and it worked well for both and suppressed weeds. I've no doubt trailing marrows will do the same. Of course it wont completely eradicate weeds,and keep in mind it will turn into something of a jungle...but effective and fun. Far too early to sow either though,dont even think about sowing to late april.

[gavinjconway]

evening all.

i'm trying sweetcorn for the first year this year. i'm planning to mulch and let marrow's run around them to act as a weed suppressant. i'm liking the theory, but not sure how effective it will be.

anyway. when can i sow sweetcorn? and when can i sow marrows in comparison?

i'm concerned that if the marrows grow quicker than the corn that they will suffocate the corn.

any ideas and opinions.

thanks all.

They compete with eachother and the squashes get tall looking for light.   I use weed fabric to grow through and zero weeds...

I sow my marrows and courgettes mid to end of April.. plant out end of may

[beesrus]

A properly prepared bed is the best defence against weeds. I dig over the Winter manured bed and weed about now, and weed thoroughly again any interlopers just before planting out the last week in May. That, and another quick two minute weed before the corn are a couple of feet tall is usually enough.
I do plant butternut squash adjacent to the sweet corn, but don't worry where they spread. If I'm honest, I prefer it if the squash run down the sides of the corn block as I like to be able to get to the squash flowers to hand pollinate them in a poor Summer when squash can struggle for time. These days bees need all the help they can get.
Water retention is probably more important than the odd weed or two, and squash certainly helps that, but I tend to mulch if I think it necessary. If there were no mains water on our site I would probably take the mulching more seriously.

[JayG]

Being perennially short of space here I push my luck on sweet corn spacing, so wouldn't want to add to their challenges by introducing competition from anything else - most years it's a bit of an end of summer nail-biter anyway waiting for the cobs to ripen.

Further south, good summer , wider spacing, I'd probably include a trailing squash or two (not a bush type.)

Won't be sowing either squash or sweet corn for a few weeks yet - as has been said sweet corn in particular is not a crop to gamble with as far as sufficient warmth after planting out is concerned.

[LilacSandy]

Oh bother, I sowed mine a couple of weeks ago and they are all showing above the soil (sweetcorn that is), hope I have enough room in the house to keep potting on  , got them in the small packets with no instructions.  That will teach me not to be so cocky about my gardening prowess 

[gavinjconway]

Oh bother, I sowed mine a couple of weeks ago and they are all showing above the soil (sweetcorn that is), hope I have enough room in the house to keep potting on  , got them in the small packets with no instructions.  That will teach me not to be so cocky about my gardening prowess 

Mmmmm - maybe you (and most of us) need to look at Johns growing and monthly guides a bit more often 

Keep them with good light and coolish so they slow down a bit and dont go leggy. And so more in 2 weeks time - just in case..

[3759allen]

thanks for the replies.

i'll sit on my hands until the end of the month then.

i was thinking that growing beside the corn and train them in and between the corn would be better, so they don't compete.

do i need to plant both marrow and sweetcorn at the same time? or will the marrow's over take and smother the corn before they get tall enough?

[gavinjconway]

thanks for the replies.

i'll sit on my hands until the end of the month then.

i was thinking that growing beside the corn and train them in and between the corn would be better, so they don't compete.

do i need to plant both marrow and sweetcorn at the same time? or will the marrow's over take and smother the corn before they get tall enough?

Yes just let them inter mingle... but not great big pumpkin types..

Plant the corn first or the marrows will smother them.

[mumofstig]

Just sown courgettes 

[Headgardener22]

I succession sow most things, 2 or 3 batches a week or two apart. That means that I can ignore the weather a bit. Needs more space in the greenhouse but I find it works for me.

[Yorkie]

I grow squashes and corn in the same beds, with the squashes at each corner and trailing initially round the sweetcorn and then among it when they branch off.  In my experience by the time the squash has started getting into the growing area of the corn, the corn is big enough to stand on its own two feet.