Sweetcorn question.

[Veggielot]

I can't say I have any real problems when I have grown sweetcorn. I put one seed per pot and plant out blocks. I loose the odd one when I plant out but no worse than other vegetables and find that they pretty much look after themselves. Always worth thinking about planting something's with them as you are going to have to wait some time before you get a crop.

[Jungle Jane]

Sunflowers are great with sweetcorn for attracting predatory insects,I plant a few geraniums with them too,anything to distract pests from my corn.

[Alison]

Sunflowers are great with sweetcorn for attracting predatory insects,I plant a few geraniums with them too,anything to distract pests from my corn.

What pests do you get on your corn? I find it's pretty much immune round here.

[muddled]

What pests do you get on your corn? I find it's pretty much immune round here.

Here we have cobs filled with woodlice or earwigs and we have rats, mice and foxes that just love corn too!
At my last site there were horses in the next field that, every year,, staged a mass break in so a fat mare called Grace could gorge on the just ripe corn!
(she was my absolute favourite horse ever...the original 'cheeky mare'

[Jungle Jane]

What pests do you get on your corn? I find it's pretty much immune round here.

I have a few aphids but I have ladybirds walking around on my corn too so they help me,the aphids are in small numbers so no damage to leaves but I really think the flowers help in that respect. They're an attraction for ladybirds to come to the area (I first saw ladybirds nesting in my sunflower heads before they'd opened & then again when the plants were shrivelling up ladybirds were inside the head hibernating,I accidentally disturbed them but they're safe,I moved them to the ladybird house). I also have slugs eating my sunflowers,if they weren't there they might eat some of my leaves? Flowers also look nice with corn,they're very green,it's nice to have some colour (especially yellow as its a great attractant for bees).

[Scoot]

I can't say I have any real problems when I have grown sweetcorn. I put one seed per pot and plant out blocks. I loose the odd one when I plant out but no worse than other vegetables and find that they pretty much look after themselves. Always worth thinking about planting something's with them as you are going to have to wait some time before you get a crop.

I'm going to grow Sugar snap up them.

[vixylix]

I had lots of earwigs living in my corn last year - they didnt damage the ears but did chew off all the silks - fortunately they were baby corn so it wasn't an issue - they are creepy little blighters though!

[Jungle Jane]

Someone posted a tip about earwigs & to have an upside down pot filled with straw to attract them (as they like dry spaces). I don't see many earwigs,maybe the birds find them? Theres a lot of sparrows here in the spring & they're in & out of pots & tiny spaces.

[21up]

Someone posted a tip about earwigs & to have an upside down pot filled with straw to attract them (as they like dry spaces). I don't see many earwigs,maybe the birds find them? Theres a lot of sparrows here in the spring & they're in & out of pots & tiny spaces.

Hi JJ its a well known one is that my dad used to do it but only with the old clay pots and then next day he would put a light to the straw and then fill it with straw again .
cannot do it with the plastic pots

[Jungle Jane]

I don't think I'd be able to set fire to them,sounds a bit horrifying,tipping them out & treading on them/taking them somewhere else is how I'd prefer to be treated. I'm not good with killing things (except aphids,probably because you can't see their face) it's not their fault they're a pest,its a reason why I like flowers with fruit & veg,they keep the pests occupied & confused etc. so you don't really have to worry.