• slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide
  • slide

Grow Your Own Corn on the Cob

Nothing beats fresh-from-the -garden corn on the cob.  But this is one vegetable that takes up a lot of space for a small harvest. 

Get the most out of your harvest with proper planting and care.  And consider planting one of the newer cultivars that has sweeter and longer-lasting flavor.

Prepare the soil before planting and incorporate a low nitrogen slow release fertilizer, like Milorganite, in the soil before planting.  Grow corn in blocks to improve wind pollination that’s needed for a bigger harvest.  Plant the seeds in rows an inch deep and 9 to 12 inches apart.  You can plant in short rows 12 inches apart as long as you can reach each plant and spaces between them for weeding, harvesting and care.

Water thoroughly as needed throughout the season.  Harvest ears about three weeks after the silks emerge.  If the kernel oozes a milky liquid when punctured, it’s ready to pick.

A bit more information: Consider growing one of the All-America Selection Winners like Honey ‘N Pearl, Honey Select, and How Sweet It Is.  These were selected for their long lasting extra sweet flavor.  And be sure to stagger planting and harvest dates or plant your sweet corn at least 250 feet away from other corn plantings.  If they cross pollinate, it can ruin the flavor.

Upcoming Live Events
& Webinars


March 27, 2024
FREE WEBINAR

How to Start a Garden for Beginners
Register now

April 3, 2024
Garden Trends 

Franklin Public Library, Franklin, WI

April 10, 2024
FREE WEBINAR

Container Gardening Throughout the Year
Register now

April 11, 2024
FREE WEBINAR

7 Steps to Managing Water Where it Falls in Your Yard
Register now

April 17, 2024
Landscaping for Birds: 
A Gardener’s Perspective

Glendale, WI 

April 18, 2024
Be a Waterwise Gardener
Golden Rondelle Theater, Racine, WI
Register now

April 20, 2024
Pruning Hydrangeas and Other Shrubs 
Pasquesi Home & Gardens, Lake Bluff, IL

April 27, 2024
Ridges & Rivers Book Festival
Viroqua, WI

April 28, 2024
Flowering Trees and Shrubs
Ebert's Greenhouse Village, Ixonia, WI

May 1, 2024
FREE WEBINAR

Ornamental Fruits and Vegetables
Register now

May 9, 2024
FREE WEBINAR

How to Plant Your Rain Garden
Register now

WATCH ON-DEMAND WEBINARS

Learn More

Book an Appearance

Learn More

Enter to Win The Birds & Blooms' Ultimate Gardening Guide !

ENTER NOW