our corn has sprouted little tendrils . does this mean we may get corn this year,after all?


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Mrs. Bradley,

It is definitely a good start! You will see the ears starting to grow and silk soon, that's when you know you might have corn. (Those tendrils are called tassels. )

I grew up in deep south Texas and my dad always planted at least 20 acres of corn--just for my family!!--Of course we always had an abundance, and what we couldn't pick, we would let dry, then come through in the heat of summer on a tractor & trailer and pick the corn for the animals.

The tassels are usually the end step of the vegetative stages of development, and soon to follow will be the reproductive development (the kernels will grow, fill with the milk, and then turn into the delicious yellow kernels that we so love to devour)-yummmmm. You should start seeing silk on the husks in about a week.

How much corn do you have planted? Sometimes corn doesn't do too well in a "stressed" environment, or with too little "friends" around--lots of corn stalks.

I think you should get the best results if you can protect a smaller crop from wind or other things that might stress it out. If it's not stressed the silks will catch the pollen needed from the tassel to start reproducing (making the kernels), and the kernels will develop without a hitch, otherwise it might be a little delayed, and the kernels will not produce.

About 2 weeks after you see the silks appear, then the kernels/blisters will begin developing (they're called blisters at this stage because they're so small).

You'll want to pick the ears about 3-4 weeks after the silk appears, any longer and the kernels will start hardening, and won't be nice and juicy.

I hope you get lots of corn out of this! I just love fresh corn on the cob!

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CajunMama
"Sing praises to the Lord..." Psalm 9:11

Normaly you plant corn in a block of at least 4 row.

I planted 3 rows but due to the hot weather , the corn didn't do anything.

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One OS to rule them, one OS to find them:
One OS to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In the Land of Redmond where the shadows lie.

CajunMama,
That's alot of really good info,
Thanks!!!!
(We'll have to consider you our reside "CORN EXPERT" )
Out of curiousity, what all did you do with your corn growing up?
Always love to hear of recipes and such...
(I actually have a "tip" for "eating" or "buttering" corn, I should go and put that in the Recipe section, if you do have any...
please put them in)

*I planted corn, and between the Japanese beetles, cuke beetles, corn aphids and ants..
I will considerate a true miracle of GOD,
If I get one ear!!!

But I never fear, cause at the veryyyyyyy least,
I HAVE HALLOWEEN/FALL DECORATIONS!!!!!

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Weezie

Don't forget to be kind to strangers. For some who have
done this have entertained angels without realizing it.
- Bible - Hebrews 13:2





http://photobucket.com/albums/y250/weezie13/

quote:

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Originally posted by ND farm girl:
The silks - each one of those is 'attached' to a kernel. When the tassel is up - that is where the pollen is, when it drops - it touches the silk which fertilizes it and makes the kernel grow. Each one of those silks need to be 'touched' by a piece of pollen.

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You're right ND farm girl! That's how everything works! And to think that God created everything to work the way it does....It's pretty amazing! And that's why you should always plant "more" corn so that they can fertilize each stalk and each and every kernel!

quote:

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Originally posted by Weezie:
Out of curiousity, what all did you do with your corn growing up?

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We had A LOT, and I mean A LOTTTTTTTTT of fresh corn on the cob. (Went great with the BBQ, fresh beef of course, or chicken if you preferred that.) My mom also used to fry the corn. She would heat some butter in a frying pan, then cut the kernels off of the ears straight into the pan. Yummy! We froze a lot of fresh ears to eat after the season. We also would cut the kernels of the cob and mix in with other veggies like squash, zucchini, eggplant, green beans....Oh, how I do miss life on the farm.

Anything that we didn't eat or give away we harvested after it dried out and put it in the old barn and would shuck it, then put it through a machine to remove the kernels from the cob to make feed corn to give to the animals.



I do miss all of the fun on the farm. As a kid and teen you don't think of all the work we had to do as work, we just had funnnnnnn! And all of my friends and my brother's friends loved coming over to help. We'd have big feasts to feed us all. Ahhhh memories.

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CajunMama
"Sing praises to the Lord..." Psalm 9:11

CajunMama,
That sounds really good-frying up fresh corn in butter.
I'll have to buy a couple of ears to make it, but I want to cook that ! Bought corn is as close to fresh as I can get right now.
I've never heard of cooking corn like that. YUM.

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I wasn't going to read this thread Since I don't grow corn. And the reason I don't grow any is because I thought it required a lot of work etc...But it is a very interesting topic, and I have learned a lot about growing corn. Thanks for all the info...Maybe next year I'll try growing some corn, I've always heard that if it didn't tassel by 4th of July then forget it, you would have no corn...But of course that is probable a regional thing for my area???

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we had fresh corn this week and it was awesome! very juicy and yummy. when i make sauted corn and i cut it off the cob i also use the flat side of the knife and scrape all the "leftovers" off the cob and put that in too. it's more juice and flavor and it's all yummy. less waste.