How to grow sweet corn well? Detailed explanation of cultivation techniques
How to grow sweet corn well? A guide. Sweet corn is a type of sweet corn suitable for eating raw. Compared with ordinary sweet corn, its main characteristics are thin skin, abundant juice, crisp texture and sweetness. It can be eaten directly raw or cooked. There is no essential difference between sweet corn and sweet corn; ordinary sweet corn can all be eaten raw...
How to grow sweet corn well? A guide
Sweet corn is a type of sweet corn suitable for eating raw. Compared with ordinary sweet corn, its main characteristics are thin skin, abundant juice, crisp texture and sweetness. It can be eaten directly raw or cooked. There is no essential difference between sweet corn and sweet corn; ordinary sweet corn can all be eaten raw, only the taste varies in quality, and those with good taste are regarded by people as sweet corn. Therefore, there is no dedicated sweet corn variety for cultivation. At present, the sweet corn varieties suitable for cultivation as sweet corn in our province mainly include "Chaotian 2018", "Jinyin Micui" and "Zhefeng Tian No. 2", etc., all available from local seed companies. The cultivation techniques of sweet corn are similar to those of sweet corn, and generally the following points should be well handled:
Sowing in stages: To prevent cross-pollination from reducing quality, sweet corn should be planted in isolation from other types of corn. Isolation can be done by planting distance (more than 300 m), flowering period (more than 30 days), or by using barriers such as hills, forests, and buildings. Sweet corn has a short harvest period and is difficult to keep fresh, so sowing in stages can achieve harvest and marketing in batches. Generally, sowing can be done from late March to early August. With heat-preservation facilities in early spring, it can be appropriately advanced, but sowing should be avoided between late May and mid-June. Corn sown in this period has its flowering and pollination period falling right in the July-August summer drought weather, which easily causes bald tips, missing kernels, or empty stalks in the plants.
Sprout promotion before sowing: It is advisable to choose sandy loam field plots with relatively high fertility and sufficient fertilizer and water for cultivating sweet corn, and finely prepare the land before sowing. Sweet corn seeds are shriveled, have small endosperm, low germination and seedling emergence rates, and weak seedling vigor. To strive for uniform, complete, and strong seedlings, whether direct sowing or raising seedlings for transplanting, it is best to carry out sprout promotion before sowing.
Scientific fertilization: Sweet corn has flat leaves and a loose plant type. The planting density is preferably 3500-4000 plants per mu. In fertilization, apply base fertilizer appropriately, apply seedling fertilizer early, apply ear fertilizer heavily, apply nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in combination, and advocate increasing the application of organic fertilizer. For field plots with medium fertility, the total amount of chemical fertilizer should be controlled at about 15 kg pure nitrogen, 6 kg phosphorus (phosphorus pentoxide), and 6 kg potassium (potassium oxide).
Careful management: Sweet corn has weak growth in the seedling stage and is susceptible to pests in the later stage, so field management work should be done in a timely manner. After emergence, check seedlings and fill gaps promptly, and control weeds. In the seedling and middle stages, remove tillers and excess small ears, and in the middle and late stages, control pests such as corn borers. The harvest period of sweet corn is about 3 days earlier than ordinary sweet corn. About 20 days after pollination, the best harvest period can be grasped in a timely manner based on silk color and field tasting.
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