When Is It Time to Plant Corn?

Grow sweet corn for a late-fall harvest.

Corn is a warm-season crop that comes in early-season, mid-season and late-season varieties. While late-season varieties tend to be the most flavorful, early-season and mid-season varieties are ideal for areas with shorter growing seasons. Sweet corn is the type that is planted for human consumption, and it is easily cultivated on a small scale in a backyard garden.

Prior to Planting

Early in the spring, prepare the soil for your sweet corn crop. Sweet corn thrives in a rich, loose soil, though it can survive as long as the soil is well-drained. If you are growing an early-ripening crop, use a sandy soil, which warms up sooner than dense, heavy soil. The optimum pH for a sweet corn is between 6.0 and 6.5, so test your soil. Use a spade to break up the soil to a depth of 6 inches before planting.

Time Frame

Plant your corn according to the temperature of the soil. Use a soil thermometer to test the soil throughout the spring, waiting until the soil is at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Ideal soil temperatures for planting coin range from 60 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Wait to plant the corn until it has been at least two weeks after the latest frost date in your area.

Types

When you are determining when to plant your sweet corn, consider how long the growing season in your area is. Check the farmer's almanac to figure out how many days of seasonable weather you have, and then plant your corn accordingly. A shorter growing season lasts just two months, while a longer growing season lasts three months or more. For example, if you have a very short growing season, plant Quickie, which is a bicolor corn that matures in 64 days. If you have a longer growing season, plant Stowell's Evergreen, which requires 100 days to mature, or Trucker's Favorite, which requires 95 days to mature. Both Stowell's Evergreen and Trucker's Favorite are known for having good flavor and juicy kernels.

Planting

When you plant your cork kernels, plant them 1 inch deep in heavier soils and 2 inches deep in light sandy soils. Give each kernel at least 1 foot of space between it and other plants. Corn is pollinated by the wind, so to ensure good pollination, plant them in at least four short rows. If you are planting several varieties of corn, separate them by at least 250 feet to prevent cross-pollination and a resulting poor taste in the kernels.

References

• Purdue University: Growing Sweet Corn
• University of Illinois: Corn