Corn is an annual herbaceous plant: cultivation, varieties, description, photo

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Corn is a herbaceous heat-loving plant, which is grown by many summer residents. Of course, in order to get a good harvest of this wonderful crop, certain agricultural practices should be followed. First of all, you need to choose the right variety of corn. You should also decide where exactly it will grow on the site. And, of course, in the process of growing this crop, like any other, you need to properly feed and water it.

General Description

Maize is an annual plant of the Cereal family. In nature, there are only 6 of its varieties. However, only sweet corn is cultivated as a garden and agricultural crop. This variety, depending on the variety, can reach a height of 1.5-3 m. Unlike most other representatives of cereals, the stalk of corn is not empty, but filled with tissue. Its thickness is usually 3-7 cm.

In the lower part of this plant forms supporting aerial roots. The length of a leaf in corn can reach up to 1 m, and the width - up to 10see The flowers of this plant are unisexual. Males are collected in panicles and grow at the very top of the stem. Female flowers form cobs, located in the axils. The color of corn seeds is usually bright yellow. But there are varieties with white, red or black grains. The shape and size of the seeds of this crop may be different.

Popular varieties

Corn is a southern plant that takes a long time to ripen on the cob. Therefore, for central Russia, the Urals and Siberia, it is worth choosing mainly its early varieties. The most productive hybrids, yielding crops by mid-August, include the following:

• Sundance F1.
• Trophy F1.
• Sugar F1.

Also, under certain conditions in the country in the middle lane, you can get a good harvest of mid-ripening corn. Such, for example, as:

• Cowberry.
• Pearls.
• Mermaid.

Later varieties of this crop are mainly suitable only for Ukraine and the southern regions of the Russian Federation. The most popular corn hybrids in this group are Russian popcorn and Polaris.

Variety Sundance F1

This powerful, early maturing hybrid produces mature cobs within 60-65 days of planting. Sundance F1 grain for food is usually used in the stage of milk maturity in fresh or canned form. This variety received good reviews from summer residents, first of all, precisely for the excellent taste of the ears. Also, the Sundance F1 hybrid is praised for its drought and frost resistance. Howeverthis variety does not like shading and poor soils. Corn is sown (photo can be seen below) Sundance F1 in early May.

Hybrid Trophy F1

The vegetation period of this variety is 75 days. The Trophy F1 hybrid should be planted in a well-lit place, without thickening. The ears of this variety are very long (up to 23 cm) and sweet. The grain has a honey color. Cobs can be eaten both fresh and boiled. Some housewives also preserve grain of this variety for the winter.

Sugar F1

This is a very popular good variety of corn, the fruits of which begin to ripen as early as 70-80 days after planting. The grains of the Sugar F1 hybrid are very tender, juicy and sweet. The cob of this corn has an average length (up to 20 cm). The variety has earned its popularity not only for its good taste, but also for its resistance to diseases such as blister smut.

Hybrid Lingonberry

This mid-season corn begins to ripen 85-89 days after planting. The cob of Cowberry is rather short - 18 cm. But the grain of this variety is very large and has a pleasant bright yellow color. Like many other varieties of corn, Lingonberry does not tolerate shading at all. The site for it should be chosen with light fertile soil. Cowberry cobs are best eaten boiled or canned.

Pearl Hybrid

The maturity of this corn is 80-85 days. Her cobs have an average length (up to 20 cm) andare bright yellow in color. You can use pearl corn grains for cooking or canning. Among the advantages of this hybrid, summer residents, among other things, include high yields and resistance to various fungal and bacterial diseases.

Corn Mermaid

This variety is perhaps the most popular among summer residents of Russia. Its main advantage is simply phenomenal resistance to disease. It is almost never necessary to treat Rusalka corn. The cobs of this variety begin to ripen 80-90 days after the appearance of the first shoots. Their length is average - up to 20 cm. The color of corn seeds of the Rusalka variety is lemon.

Late varieties

Hybrid Russian bursting ripens 90-95 days after planting. Her cob is very thin, it has a conical shape. A characteristic feature of the variety is the cracking grain of popcorn. Soils Russian bursting prefers light, fertile, well-moistened. This variety is usually grown for flakes and popcorn.

Long (up to 23 cm) cobs of the Polaris hybrid are excellent for canning and fresh consumption. This variety is valued by summer residents, including for resistance to diseases and lodging. Polaris grain is long and has excellent taste. This corn should be planted in light fertile soils.

How to choose the right place

Corn is a crop that prefers, above all, very well lit areas. Therefore, it is usually planted onsouth side of the garden or vegetable garden. At the same time, the largest crops can be harvested by placing corn on a hill. The best precursors for this crop are:

• legumes;
• cucumbers;
• tomatoes;
• cabbage;
• potato;
• zucchini.

It is highly discouraged to grow corn after beets.

How to prepare a garden bed

The site chosen for corn should be dug up since autumn. At the same time, manure and phosphate fertilizers should be applied to the ground. It is desirable to improve acidic soil with lime, chalk or dolomite flour. In the spring, just before planting, the corn bed only needs to be loosened a little.

When to sow

Planting corn in open ground is usually done immediately after the air temperature outside warms up to +12 C. In Ukraine and in the southern regions of Russia, this is approximately the end of April. In the middle lane, sowing is usually done in mid-May. In the Urals and Siberia, the best planting time is the beginning of June. A sign that it is time to sow this plant is the flowering of bird cherry and sweet cherry.

Corn is a relatively unpretentious crop, which can be grown both by conventional technology (planted directly into the ground) and by seedlings. In the latter case, the seeds are placed in cups with pre-prepared soil mixture in mid-April (for the middle lane). Soil can be taken as ordinary garden soil, adding to it wellrotted manure. Keeping cups with seeds in a very warm room is not recommended. Good seedlings of corn can be obtained only at an air temperature of no more than 20 degrees. It is best to install cups on the south window. If the seedlings do not have enough sunlight, they will begin to stretch and grow very weak.

How to properly prepare seeds

Before planting, corn grains must be laid out in the sun for about 5 days. Then they need to be placed in warm water for an hour. The seeds are then dried. Before planting the grain, it is advisable to dust it with hexachlorane or granosan according to the instructions. This will prevent infection of young seedlings with pathogens, fungi or harmful insects.

How to plant correctly

Being late with sowing corn is highly discouraged. This can lead to a significant reduction in yield. The seeding depth during planting on light soils should be 6 cm, on heavy soils - 4 cm. The optimal distance between individual plants for most varieties is 35 cm. The only exception is very high corn. Seeds of such varieties are planted at a distance of 45 cm from each other. The space between the rows of corn should be approximately 70 cm. 3-4 grains are placed in the hole. Thinning is done after 7-8 leaves appear on the plants. At the same time, the strongest bush is left in the hole.

How to water corn

The soil under this crop should not be moistened too often, but plentifully. After watering the soil under each plantshould get wet at least 10 cm. In no case should the soil in the beds be allowed to dry out. Half-empty cobs and low yields are the main consequences of insufficient watering of a crop such as corn. The photo below shows the result of overdrying plants clearly.

How to feed

Maize is fertilized for the first time about 20 days after planting. In this case, a mullein solution is usually used, prepared in a ratio of 1:11. You can also water the plants with diluted bird droppings (1:20-25). Additionally, phosphate-potassium fertilizers should be applied to the ground. This will be especially useful if the corn leaves have become wavy at the edges. This form of them speaks just the same about the lack of potassium.

Weeding and pinching

Corn is a plant under which weeds usually have to be removed only in the first couple of weeks after planting. This culture is very strong and takes a lot of nutrients from the earth. Therefore, no weeds usually grow under it. In the phase of active development of green mass in corn, side shoots must be removed. The fact is that they take a lot of vitality from the plant. And this, in turn, greatly affects the yield.

After the corn grows to about 20-30 cm, it is advisable to mulch the soil in the garden. It is best to use well-rotted horse or cow manure for this purpose. You can also cover the soil under the plants with ordinary dried grass.

Harvest in the country andharvesting corn for silage in the fields

When is the best time to pluck the cobs - of course, a matter of taste of the owner of the site. Some people like unripe sweet corn. Others prefer ripe, cooked cobs. In any case, it is not recommended to store fresh corn for too long. Cobs should be eaten or preserved no later than 20 days after they are plucked.

In the dachas, the grown crop, of course, is simply harvested by hand. Farmers who cultivate this crop on large areas use special machines for harvesting corn. This technique is something like a small combine with a special harvester. The cutting unit is usually located in front of the machine. Since corn is usually grown on agricultural land for livestock feed, it is cut off completely - the green mass along with the cobs.