How to Start Sweet Corn in the House

Sweet corn is a favorite summer vegetable.

Unlike field corn that is picked when it is dry, sweet corn is picked when it is still moist and immature. It has to be eaten quickly before the sugar turns into starch; consequently it stores poorly. Start sweet corn indoors four weeks before the last frost date. Corn grows quickly and germinates in four to seven days if given lots of heat; it thrives in temperatures from 60 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Most sweet corn varieties are hybrids. Buy new seed every year to ensure a good crop.

Things You'll Need

• Potting soil formulated for starting seeds
• Peat pots
• Heat mat
• Fluorescent light
• Timer

Instructions

1. Fill peat pots with soil. Use peat pots because sweet corn does not like its roots to be disturbed when it is transplanted. You can plant the pot directly into the garden.

2. Water the soil until the excess drips out the bottom of the pot. Tamp the soil down.

3. Plant three sweet corn seeds in each pot, making sure to cover them with soil to a depth of the diameter of the seed.

4. Soak the seeds with water. Continue to water the seeds when the soil dries out.

5. Place the seeds in a warm room on top of a heat mat for germination.

6. Weed out all but the strongest seedling after they have germinated.

7. Move pots under a fluorescent light, plugged into a timer for 12 hours of light. Continue to water the pots when they dry out.

8. Transplant into the garden after all danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed up to 50 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Tips & Warnings

• If you don't have a heat mat, you can place the pots on top of the fridge or above a heat source like a radiator.

References

• Garden Action: Growing Sweet Corn
• "The Harrowsmith Northern Gardener"; Jennifer Bennett; 1982

Resources

• Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service: Growing Sweet Corn