When is the most suitable time to plant corn in Henan?

Corn is a crop widely loved by people, with high nutritional value and beauty value, and is also rich in protein and vitamins. Some farmers in Henan want to plant corn, so when is the corn planting time in Henan?

1. Corn planting time in Henan

Corn planting in Henan is generally divided into two seasons. The planting time for spring corn is from April to May, and the planting time for summer corn is in mid-June. The planting time varies slightly for different varieties, and the actual situation shall prevail.

2. The growth cycle of corn

The corn growth period refers to the number of days corn experiences from sowing to the maturity of new seeds. The length of the growth period varies depending on the variety, sowing date, light, temperature and other environmental conditions. Generally, with early-maturing varieties, late sowing and high temperatures, the growth period is short; otherwise, it is long. The whole growth period of corn is divided into major developmental stages such as sowing, emergence, three-leaf, seven-leaf, jointing, tasseling, flowering, grain filling, milk ripening and maturity. The sowing stage is the date of sowing. In the emergence stage, more than 60% of seedlings about 2~3 cm tall have emerged across the field. In the jointing stage, more than 60% of plants in the field have begun to elongate at the basal stem nodes. In the large trumpet stage, more than 60% of plants in the field have upper leaves showing a trumpet shape. In the tasseling stage, the tips of the tassels of more than 60% of plants in the field are exposed 3~5 cm above the top leaves. In the silking stage, the silks of the ears of more than 60% of plants in the field are exposed from the husks. In the maturity stage, more than 90% of plants in the field have hardened kernels and show the variety's inherent color and luster, and the milk line of the kernels has disappeared. The process of corn growth and development can be divided into the seedling stage, ear stage and flower-grain stage.

Seedling stage: refers to the period from emergence to jointing. This stage is dominated by vegetative growth, with root system establishment as the center. Emergence is the period from sowing to seed germination, when 50% of seedlings have emerged in the field and the seedlings are 2 cm tall.

Ear stage: refers to the period from jointing to tasseling. This stage is when vegetative growth and reproductive growth proceed together, and it is the most vigorous growth period. This stage can also be divided into the jointing stage, large trumpet stage and small trumpet stage. The jointing stage is the period when the young ear is differentiating and a 2~3 cm stem node can be felt by hand near the ground. The large trumpet stage is the period when the ear leaf begins to emerge but has not yet unfolded, forming a new cluster of leaves that is flat on top and hollow in the middle, shaped like a trumpet, and the ear enters the floret differentiation stage, and a flexible young ear can be felt between the upper unfolded leaves and the not-yet-unfolded leaves.

Flower-grain stage: refers to the period from tasseling to seed setting, centered on reproductive growth, and is the stage of grain formation. It includes the tasseling stage, pollen-shedding stage and seed setting.

Corn has strong adaptability and is grown in most areas of our country, and it is also very simple to grow.