[3759allen]

hi.

can you direct sow sweetcorn?

last year i chitted them inside, then started them off in 3l pots. this year i'm thinking it may be a bit of a pain to start them in pots due to working odd hours and being able to keep an eye on them enough.

chitting worked well for me last year, so can i chit and sow direct in the the prepared ground?

[mumofstig]

Yes, you can sow direct - but it means waiting until the weather is properly warm, and hoping they form cobs before the weather changes in the Autumn.

If you grow a small variety Lark/Swift you stand a better chance.

[azubah]

I tried it a few years ago and nothing came up. It does need it to be warm.

[Kristen]

started them off in 3l pots.

Presume that is 3-Litre?  If so its a big plant to start off a Sweetcorn seed in.  Mine are grown in tubes about 5" tall and 2" diameter, which is about 1/4 Litre.

No help for this year, if you aren't going to be around to water them etc., but they'd be happier in smaller containers (until planted out).

[Audy70]

Last year my directly sown corn did better than the ones sown indoors. I sowed them under cloches in mid-April and indoor in mid-May. This year I'm doing that same.

[Truffle]

Last year I started mine in pots as normal, but got a very poor show. I planted what few I had out at the advised time and at the same time sowed seed directly to the grown. I actually had better results from the seed sown directly. As said before needs to be warm weather.

This years pots still show no sign of movement. Also I have never chitted.

[Robster]

I've never sown direct and come to that I've never chatted them either.  I should imagine that if they are sown direct and it's not too warm they could take a while to get going.  I've only ever sown them into root trainers and kept them in an incubator until they are up and then indoors until they go out mid to end May

[Sparkyrog]

Admittedly its agricultural ,But we started drilling 120 acres today .

[BumbleJo]

I've never sown direct and come to that I've never chatted them either.  I should imagine that if they are sown direct and it's not too warm they could take a while to get going.  I've only ever sown them into root trainers and kept them in an incubator until they are up and then indoors until they go out mid to end May

I'm going to start mine off in root trainers, never done it before.  My question is do I leave them in there or pot them on in to bigger pots before eventually planting out?

[Robster]

Sparkyrog,
You'll never eat that many.
We've got 30 or so earlier and I'll do a few later

[Robster]

Bumblejo,
I put them out in the ground straight from the root trainers as soon as its calm weather.  it it's windy they seem to not get away very well so gentle weather and no likelihood of frost

[BumbleJo]

Bumblejo,
I put them out in the ground straight from the root trainers as soon as its calm weather.  it it's windy they seem to not get away very well so gentle weather and no likelihood of frost

Cheers Robster, will do that.😀

[3759allen]

a mixed opinion there.

are sweetcorn ok with root disturbance? if i could start them in small pots i could at least sit them in trays to help with watering.

i used big pots as i was going away on holiday for 2 weeks when they were a little too small to go outside before i went but would have out grown small pots while i was away. (they did get watered while i was away though).

it was a first year of growing corn last year and it sounded like chitting was a good idea. it did seem to help them pop up quicker so will prob do the same this year.

good input sparkyrog. i was thinking they sow direct in the fields and they don't get additional heat.

[Kristen]

are sweetcorn ok with root disturbance?

I thought they were not supposed to like root disturbance.  But I see them sold in tiny modules in the garden centre, and folk grow them in small pots, and they seem to grow OK??

I grow them in newspaper pots for minimal disturbance, but sometimes I leave them too long and the roots grow from one pot into the next, and I have to pull them apart when I plant them - even those seems to grow the same as the rest.

So I don't know any more!

it was a first year of growing corn last year and it sounded like chitting was a good idea

The seed is prone to rot, more so with the newer Supersweet varieties.  (They sometimes come coated with a fungicide to assist - don't lick your fingers after sowing!). So I think chitting can help, particularly for varieties that are prone to rotting

[Beetroot Queen]

Mine were really treated rough last year because they had got too big for the pots, they didnt seem to bother but I lost a few hours sleep worrying about them lol