Corn

[Elmigo]

Do you plant them outside halfway spring? And how do you keep the mice away from your corn?

[Primrose]

Assume you mean what we call Sweet Corn. I sowed some a couple of days ago and they're currently in my mini plastic greenhouse but to be really safe it,s probably better to keep them on an indoor windowsill util the plants are several inches high.

(I sometimes wonder if it's worth leaving a piece of bread or a small dish of dry oats nearby in a greenhouse to give mice something easier to eat to,preserve your precious crops, or does this simply encourage them all the more? Has anybody ever tried this?)

You're supposed to plant them in blocks to increase pollination by the wind but i normally only grow about 8 plants so grow them in a couple of rows dotted in between other lower crop and transplant plant them out in mid/late late June when they're at lease 8 inches tall. To be honest I,ve rarely had the same large fat yellow cobs which you see in the supermarkets though.



. I normally plant mine in blocks between other shorter vegetables about 12 inches apart. They recommend planting them in blocks so that when the wi d blows it helps to increase pollination

[Elmigo]

Sweet Corn, yes

I believe I might have the perfect spot for those to grow in a block. Just started sowing as well and they're coming up nicely! As this is my first time ever growing corn, I did not think through transplanting them so they're all in one small tray. Do you think I should transplant them right now? I don't want to damage their tiny root systems when transplanting later, when they have completely intertwined...

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About the mice...
I have never tried this, but I think leaving a small dish for the mice is not a bad idea to leave the crops unharmed on the short term, but you may have to refill the dish immediately, as soon as it's empty, or they will move back to crops in the vegetable garden.

On the long term the mice may find this specific location to be their favorite restaurant. They might even become regular customers and invite their friends over for dinner as well, which in turn maybe increases the mice population in general...

Then again, I have never tried this so these are just my first few thoughts on it! And it doesn't sound like a bad idea at all...

[robo]

Surround the seed tray with sticky boards ,cruel maybe but it works

[Geoff]

I don't sow sweetcorn until weeks 18, 20 and 22 (start 1st May) as three small batches to grow in the greenhouse, waste of time outside up here. I sow in rootrainers with the lid on which keeps things out. One set of louvre vents on the greenhouse is at ground level and I have had to put wire mesh over to keep things out when the corn is ready.

[Westi]

My sweet corn has only just be sown & none up yet. I do try barricades but learnt on this forum that rats can take as well & not even break the stems! I was sure it was just mice! I'm sticking with the shade netting surround as mice can get over it but the big guys crash it! Only just to id the culprits! Still a re-sow regardless of who is responsible!

[Elmigo]

Hopefully the mice will stay away. Some acquaintances have a field of grass with mostly mouse holes in it. On our thick clay grounds the mice don't really dig that much, but they are still around a lot.

[Westi]

The sweet corn has popped up! Not going in until May at least & even then I'll sow some direct as well to extend the harvest, but if weather is good (could get lucky), rats have their bellies full & mice are more interested in the farmer's crop behind I may get a bit of a crop!

[Elmigo]

Amazing advice! I will sow some directly in the ground as well after the others have been planted.

[Geoff]

Might have to investigate growing wheat rather than sweetcorn the way bread flour supplies are going.

[Elmigo]

Hah, yes! But it will probably take up way more space. I would love to grow all ingredients for bread, including chicks for eggs...

[Westi]

Flour has been on my "necessary" shopping list for weeks Geoff! It is not just bread flour but all flour that seems to be missing from the shelves & the empty shelves say it is a limit of 2! I don't think the shops are getting it but the big boys are buying it all to get the sliced white out as we have to buy as no other option so their sales must be soaring.

[Colin2016]

Read reason flour is in short supply is due to packaging in smaller bags is more time consuming, less people to do work more demand means less in shops.

[Primrose]

The annoying thing about flour shortage (and we can't get any either and my husband makes all our own bread) is that probably a lot of people put it on their essential stockpiling list in case of dire emergency but it's lurking in many cupboards not being used.

Well, I hope people do use it because unless itstored correctly it will end up full of nasty weevils !

We had a supermarket delivery abiut a fortnight ago. No flour but they did send a substitute commercial loaf. . I,d forgotten what they tasted like! Won't be anxious to repeat the experience after getting used to home made, even if it's made in a Panasonic breadmaker,)

[Geoff]

No flour available for delivery on our order yesterday. Glad we say no substitutes, never thought of them sending bread instead. They cancelled the unsalted butter, wonder what the substitute would have been, and the tonic but sent the gin.