I've successfully cropped sweetcorn in Yorkshire, the Midlands, and in Devon. I'm not suggesting that always growing corn in tunnels is a panacea for success, just that it's always worked for me, is all.

I took part in the Gardening "Which" trial of Mirai sweetcorn last year. Using the methods described in my previous post, in Glasgow I got good results with the tendersweet cobs. I only grow tendersweets now. The trial also involved sowing direct into the ground at the beginning of June, with as I expected, slow growth and no cobs.

Hi Felix,
Certainly I can appreciate that in the higher latitudes, like Arthur's, to grow in tunnels is possibly the only way to get a crop but why you should waste valuable tunnel space, when by using a suitable variety in Yorkshire, Midlands and Devon, would result in good returns grown outside, totally defeats me.
JB.

To get an early crop is why. I grow it outside also, for later pickings. I don't see it as wasted space. I absolutely love sweetcorn, me. Mmm. Sweetcorn. Mmmmmmm.

There is another sweetcorn thread sonewhere from last year. Somebody -own up now please! - suggested that the way to get good pollination is to sow twice - the second sowing once the first has germinated or some 3 weeks afterwards. Plant in blocks with alternating early and late sowings. This is because the flowering heads with the pollen usually appear after the female parts which get pollinated, so the later sown plants flower at the same time as the earlier ones are ready to get pollinated.

Thanks Johnboy, no not teaching grandmother to suck eggs thanks - will consider the direction of the wind!

Also - don't know what you think, but seen few pics recently (Joy Larkom) where they plant in a circle instead of a block - thinking might try this as also take up less space.

We wouldn't try growing early corn - we often plant ours after everyone else on our site and ours catches up. I prefer to gorw things at the normal time as that is what eating seasonally is all about. Growing things early often means heating a greenhouse which is something I don't want to have to do.

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