How to Grow Corn

When to Start: mid- to late spring
At Their Best: late summer
Time to Complete: a few hours over several weeks

Materials Needed:

• corn seeds
• compost
• small pots for sowing

• seed labels
• string
• ruler

How to Sow

Corn will be ready for planting about six weeks after sowing indoors in pots. Clear all weeds from the soil and dig it over thoroughly. Plant out in square blocks — which aids pollination — spacing plants 14 inches apart. You can also sow direct from late spring onward, but sow two seeds per spot in case one of them fails to grow.

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Test for Ripeness

Once the tassels turn brown, test regularly for ripeness. Press a nail into a kernel — if a milky liquid comes out, it's ready; if watery, it's under-ripe; but if doughy, the corn has passed its best.

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Harvesting the Cobs

Pick the cobs by twisting them off, only when you're ready to cook them; their natural sugars quickly turn starchy once picked. Corn is delicious wrapped in foil and grilled on a barbecue.

Enlarge Photo+Shrink Photo-DK - How to Grow Practically Everything © 2010 Dorling Kindersley Limited