Corn 2026

[BobVance]

Any opinions about the best sweet corn to grow? Since we are moving to a house with a 1 acre yard, I’ve now got enough space to plant corn. I’ve messed around with tiny amounts in the past, often at rentals. But I’m planting more now.

I’ve got some Honey Select (yellow) which should ripen in about 2 weeks. You can see the under-renovation house in the background.

This spring (May 29), I planted some of it in a black metal raised bed and some directly in the ground. I’m not sure if it was because the raised bed stayed warmer (faster early growth?) or some other reason, but it is bigger now.

As you can see in the above pic, this area gets some shade (early/mid morning). It gets sun most of the rest of the day.

I’m also growing some Eden (white) corn at a rental, though not as much.

Most of the Eden plants have 1 or 2 ears, but this one is working overtime and has 3!

I’m getting ready to plant some more, hopefully to ripen in mid/late October. At that time, corn mostly disappears from the farmer’s market, since they would be running a frost risk.

I’m trying to decide which to plant. I could do more Eden or Honey Select. But, I’m leaning toward either Vision (yellow) or Xtra Tender (bi-color). I like my corn sweet, but it doesn’t need to be too sugary. It does need to be tender though, with bonus points if there is a nice pop when I bite it.

My tentative plan is to plant some Xtra Tender in the yard, in the spot where some of the grass got killed by some lumber sitting on it for weeks (might as well use that spot, rather than digging up healthy grass ). And maybe plant a bit of Vision at a rental. I was thinking about re-using the main planting bed, but I don’t think it will be done in time. Instead, maybe I’ll plant some peas and let them use the old corn plants as a trellis.

Note there is some shade in the yard, but it was almost 7pm when I took this pic, with the sun coming from the NW.

[clarkinks]

@BobVance

There are many varieties as you say and many reasons to plant them. I like non gmo non hybrid. It tastes different and not as sweet. I also like the hybrid peaches and cream.

Giant Goliath Corn White (Zea Mays) - non gmo tall plants

[KPS]

Honey select is the best if sweet tender corn is preferred. Once you eat it, you will never go back to the teeth jamming corn we grew up with. Been growing Honey Select for well over 20 years in a tilled garden.

Cob, creamed, frozen, it’s all good.

Peaches and cream is more coarse and starchy.

[dannytoro1]

We grow Peaches and Cream. Not a super sweet kind. But still quite sweet. And very easy growing with little attention.

[Fusion_power]

You have a few different genetic combinations to try. Corn with sh2 (shrunken 2 gene) is extremely sweet with thick skin and is relatively watery. I don’t like it because of those three traits. The original sweet corn was su (sugary) and is still a good flavored type of corn. You can purchase open pollinated or hybrid seed easily. IMO, Buhl is a good example of an open pollinated sweet corn. The third gene combination is se (sugar enhanced. You can find many good se hybrids such as Silver King. When I grow sweet corn for myself, it will always be an se variety. I am working on a shoepeg se variety from a cross of Country Gentleman (su) X Silver King (se). There are several other types of sweet corn that are combinations of su, se, sh2, and a few other genes such as du (dull). These are often advertised as “augmented” or “enhanced”. They tend to be much sweeter than any of the basic types. I’ve grown a few of them but they tend to be too sweet for my taste.

If interested in the companies that breed sweet corn, harris and crookham are arguably among the largest.

Crookham Company | Crookham Company

https://www.harrisseeds.com/

[subdood_ky_z6b]

We put in five 20 ft rows of Honey Select. Since we had to wait until the May freezes were over it didn’t get planted until early-mid June. I gave it some fertilizer when it was about 2ft tall last month. It’s about 3-4ft tall now, think I saw a few plants sending up the tassels the other day.

It’s about the only sweet corn we have grown, it is sweet but not overly so IMO. Downside is that we usually only get one full sized cob per plant, and at best a smaller but not fully filled out cob, but that may be a trait of a lot of sweet corn.

[Trav]

@clarkinks

peaches and cream.

Ooooh I’ve had this. It’s good, Silver Queen is a favorite where I’m from, butter and sugar as well, but I think that Silver Queen (and silver King is very similar, perhaps slightly better) are my favorites.

@subdood_ky_z6b no, one ear per plant is not normal, we were getting two, and there was shade the last ⅓ of the day and it was in an unfertilized part of our land, never so great for growing or gardening, and we still had two per stalk general, Indian popcorn was like that too, but smaller cobs.

[Fusion_power]

@Trav

one ear per plant is not normal, we were getting two, and there was shade the last ⅓ of the day and it was in an unfertilized part of our land,

Number of ears per stalk is strongly determined by genetics. Corn breeders over the last 30 years have focused on ‘single ear’ lines which typically produce one primary ear and a half size secondary ear. I’ve grown corn that made 5 ears and there are a few varieties that can make 10 or more ears. There is a reason nobody grows these today. They are unproductive by comparison with single ear varieties. If single ear corn is heavily fertilized, irrigated, and otherwise grown in optimum conditions, it will produce 2 full size ears.

There are plenty of genetic oddities in corn. I’ve grown varieties that produce an ear of corn as part of the tassel. Some varieties of corn try to produce 3 ears from one leaf node. None of them fully fill out so this is not a good trait. And some varieties of corn have kernels so tightly attached to the cob that they can’t be easily shelled. These are traits that are heavily selected against by breeders.

Corn has one of the most rapidly changing genomes in the plant world. It is literally a “genetic monster” compared with the original teosinte which is a grass. Lots of people want to argue against evolution, but corn is witness that evolution is a daily part of life.

[snarfing]

Can you explain more how these more ear stalks are less productive? Is it just that they produce smaller ears?

[Fusion_power]

It is mostly because the tassels tend to produce pollen over a roughly 2 week period. Multiple ears per plant tend to produce silks over a 5 or 6 week period. In other words, grow too many ears of corn on a single stalk and some of them won’t be pollinated. There is also a problem with a single stalk producing only so much photosynthate. If a stalk produces enough for 1 or 2 ears but it has to divvy up between 5 ears, the result is 5 small ears. Modern corn varieties have been selected to grow at much higher density than older varieties. Commercially, this means 26000 or more plants per acre vs in years past when 16,000 to 20,000 plants per acre was all that could be grown with reasonable production. Growing corn at high density is what makes 150+ bushels per acre totally normal. When sweet corn is grown at high density, the clear winner is varieties selected for single ear production. Also, stalks that produce multiple ears tend to mature them over about 3 weeks. This means the corn has to be harvested multiple times which is not a trait most people want to deal with. Simple terms, single ear corn is hands down the most productive and the most reliable.

I’m going to sneak in a tidbit about the Buhl white corn that I am growing for Sandhill. I selected the best ears of corn last year to produce seed and saved only the white seed from the best ears. This year I grew out those seed and have ears of corn averaging roughly 20% larger than the parent plants. I have now harvested the ears and have them drying. The best 5 ears would be considered as good as most commercially available su type hybrid sweet corn. They average between 7 and 8 inches long, 16 rows of kernels, and came from stalks with long shucks. I have those 5 ears set aside for seed to grow next year.

There are several traits I’m looking for among which are:

1. Long shucks to protect the ear from insects
2. Ears on a long peduncle so they hang down as they grow, this limits problems with rain getting in the ear
3. 16 rows of kernels because this makes the best balance of kernel size
4. Excellent flavor is a very big part of selecting this corn, I taste a few kernels from each selected ear
5. Fully filled ears meaning it was very well pollinated
6. Ears between 7 and 8 inches long because that is the length most people want to eat
7. Consistent kernel size on the ear so that the only small kernels are near the tip end
8. Stalks about 7 feet tall, no short stalks, no tall stalks
9. Maturity in 75 to 80 days

[Fusion_power]

Corn is interesting in having C4 photosynthesis. Most trees and other plants use C3 photosynthesis which is effective at low temperatures. C4 photosynthesis is most efficient above 80F. Think about this and you realize that other plants grow at a sedate fixed rate. Corn is turbocharged with C4 photosynthesis which means it can produce starch at a phenomenal rate. This is one thing that makes corn super interesting.

[subdood_ky_z6b]

i will ask this question because my wife has questioned my sanity (and not just on this issue, but anyway). I say that I have noticed when corn first starts to sprout I notice an interesting odor in the air, and it pretty much disappears when the corn gets above a foot tall or so. It’s hard to describe but it’s kind of an ammonia - ish smell. Not pleasant or unpleasant but it’s there. These are healthy plants so it’s not like there’s something wrong with them. So does anyone have a comment about this, or is my wife right?

[KPS]

As mentioned earlier, I’ve been growing HS for years.

I have two batches of seed. The old seed has grown stalks that produce 2-3 and sometimes four ears. The new lot produces 2 ears

Soil conditions matter.

[Fusion_power]

@subdood_ky_z6b

It’s hard to describe but it’s kind of an ammonia - ish smell

Dimboa - yes it is real, look it up.

“The exact level of DIMBOA varies between individual plants, but higher concentrations are typically found in young seedlings and the concentration decreases as the plant ages. Natural variation in the Bx1 gene influences the DIMBOA content of maize seedlings. In adult maize plants, the DIMBOA concentration is low, but it is induced rapidly in response to insect feeding.”

DIMBOA

[BobVance]

@KPS

I have two batches of seed. The old seed has grown stalks that produce 2-3 and sometimes four ears. The new lot produces 2 ears

Soil conditions matter.

Are you saying that the soil conditions which produced the two sets of seed are impacting the later production of the seedlings? Or are those two un-related statements, that the commonly sold Honey Select seeds have changed over time and that soil conditions also matter.

[KPS]

They are unrelated statements.

Stunted corn resulted from improper spacing will likely produce only one substandard ear. This obviously suggests inadequate water, light, and nutrient intake most certainly impacts ear count. I’ve never in my life seen a healthy cornstalk producing just one ear.

The 2-4 count vs just 2 is interesting. I’m not sure if this is a rainfall timing issue or if the seed has been refined for certain outcomes. The new seed was planted late since the old seed had a severe germination issue. Both grew in the same rows, just different timing.

[dannytoro1]

We like Peaches and Cream because it usually gives us 2 large ears. Sometimes 3 slightly smaller ears. With good heat tolerance and ability to stand our thunderstorm downpours without falling over.

We find planting it in blocks makes pollination better.

[Fusion_power]

If sweet corn is planted on 16 inch centers in the row with rows 3 feet apart, it will tend to produce 2 ears and often will have a 3rd nub. As suggested above, this is a matter of having enough soil nutrients and enough water. But breeders have still been selecting toward single ear genetics for a lot of years

[subdood_ky_z6b]

but have you smelled it?

[Fusion_power]

@subdood_k_z6b

have you smelled it

I can smell a funny alcohol/ammonia like scent from corn. I notice it most when I grow seedlings in trays under lights.

Tomato seedlings have a very different scent which I believe to be an aromatic alkaloid, most likely tomatene.

But what i suspect is that you are more sensitive to certain odors than your wife. In other words, you are a “super smeller”. Don’t laugh about this, I’m a super smeller. Odors that most people ignore are overwhelming to me. Most perfume falls in the category of unbearable. One of my worst nightmares was riding in an elevator with a woman who took a bath in perfume. I can still describe it today and it happened 45 years ago in Jacksonville Florida after I parked my truck 3 blocks away and walked to the phone office for work. Yes, it is a VERY intense memory.