If you wish to read my all my posts on growing peaches & cream corn, click here.

Due to the hot and muggy weather this summer, my corn was ready to harvest 9 weeks after I planted it. I originally estimated my corn would be ready on Tuesday, September 5th, but I picked my first ear on Thursday, August 12th. The ears did not get as big as others I have seen, but the corn is fully developed inside. The signs of corn being ready, is that the silk turns brown, and when you push on a kernel with your finger, a watery white substance comes out. If it’s more chunky, than it’s too early, if it’s clear then you waited too long.

Not all my corn was ready at the same time. Some plants grew quicker than others, so I just have to keep checking for ears to pick. I think I will be harvesting for a couple weeks.

If you wish to read my all my posts on growing peaches & cream corn, click here.

Eight weeks after planting my corn in the ground, the plants were tall with tassels on top and ears of corn beginning to form further down the plant. This is the most important part of the growing process. The corn needs to pollinate in order to produce full grown ears. Corn pollinates by the wind, which is why it is better to plant it in blocks, instead of rows. I did not anticipate any problems with my crop in regards to this.

If you wish to read my all my posts on growing peaches & cream corn, click here.

Good news, if you read my last post on my corn (click here if you didn’t) my corn has bounced back from being bent over by strong winds last week. More tassels are coming up and I saw the first appearance of silk further down the plant. As long as pollination goes successfully where that silk appears will grow an ear of corn. It seems like some plants are ahead of the rest of the pack, which could be a good thing come harvest time (would spread out the harvest). I am thankful that the storm didn’t ruin my crop.

On Friday, July 23rd, a strong storm hit my town, knocking down trees and power lines all over the city. The storm attracted the news from Detroit to my small little city. Many people were without power for over 24 hours (including me). Another victim of the storm was my corn crop. The strong winds caused my corn to be bent over just at the time when tassels where starting to appear at the top of some of the plants. Will the corn bounce back from the wind damge? It should as nothing was actually snapped. This is only my 2nd year growing corn and we never had this problem last year. At this point in the game it would be sad to lose any of the crop, as I am entering the pollination stage, which means the ears aren’t too far behind.

If you wish to read my all my posts on growing peaches & cream corn, click here.

If you wish to read my all my posts on growing peaches & cream corn, click here.

It’s been two weeks since I posted a picture of my corn. If you look at the previous entry, you will see quite a bit of growth has taken place. Then it was just about knee high and now its up to the height of my fence. It has been hot and humid the last 2 weeks, which is good growing conditions for the corn (at least the heat is good for something). It should still be a while before tassels begins to appear (I am guessing 3 weeks or so).

It’s now been about 2 1/2 weeks since I have planted my corn and the plants are doing wonderfully. If things go well I should have a good crop with plenty of ears to enjoy. The animals have pretty much left my plants alone, besides just a few nibbles on a couple ones, which was so minor I doubt it will hurt the plant. There is a saying “knee high by the 4th of July”. My corn might be close to reaching my knees before the 4th, definitely surpassing someone shorter than I (I am about 6′1). So overall, so far, so good!

If you wish to read my all my posts on growing peaches & cream corn, click here.

If you wish to read my all my posts on growing peaches & cream corn, click here.

One week after I planted my peaches & cream corn, the seeds began to sprout. At this time you need to keep a close eye on the plants. I have heard people say that birds like to fly down and chew on your young corn plants, although I have never had that problem myself. If you are concerned about critters, you can place some netting over your corn plants until they are taller and more established. Also at this time I have weeds trying to grow back along aside my corn. I am pulling those up being careful not to disturb the corn. I am also looking for plants that are too close together. In the picture below, in the middle of the picture, you can see two corn plants coming up right next to each other, so one of them is going to have to go.

Click here to see the pictures of my corn as it grows.

Nothing says the taste of summer more than fresh sweet corn on the cob. It’s only in the summer time can you get the freshiest, sweetiest kernels known to man. The experience is even better if you can grow it yourself, so you can have that pot of water boiling as you run from the garden to the house with your ticking time bomb. Corn begins the process of converting it’s sugar to startch as soon as you pick it, so the sooner you can get it in the pot the better.

Last year, I attempted to grow some corn on a small scale. Unfortnately you will have to go and ask the deer how it tasted. This year I have a new fenced in area and a much larger space. So I am hoping the 2nd time will be the charm. I choose peaches & cream corn again for the 2nd year in a row. Peaches & cream feature kernels of both the yellow and white variety.

When to Plant
After the danger of all frost. Daytime temperatures should be at least 70 degrees.

Planting Depth
Plant the seeds at a depth of 1/2 of an inch.

Watering
After planting make sure the soil is moist. It is also important to have plenty of water when the corn is producing tassels for the best results.

Expected Harvest
I got a late start because I was on vacation and I had to roto-till my soil. I planted my corn on Saturday, June 12, 2010. It takes about 85 days to reach maturity. So I can expect to harvest my corn around Tuesday, September 5th. It is later than I wanted, but still well before the first expected frost.

Click here to see the pictures of my corn as it grows.

This is a recipe review, which means this is a recipe that I did not personally come up with, but that I tried out and am giving my opinion on how the recipe turned out. For legal reasons I cannot post these recipes, but I can tell you where you can get them yourself.

I have never been a fan of creamed corn. As a child I remember seeing the stuff coming out of a can, and wanting to run in the opposite direction. But Alton Brown’s recipe for creamed corn totally changes the game and the direction of my feet. Here are my notes on this recipe.

Click here to get the recipe for Alton’s Creamed Corn.

1. I love to use fresh corn, but when it is not in season I get by with the frozen baby gold and white corn made by Bird’s Eye. It is the best frozen corn out there. About 1 bag of corn should do it for the recipe. Each time I have used fresh I have used 2 bags for a double recipe.

2. I skip the rosemary. My wife didn’t really want to try with it in it, so I just left it out. It’s great anyway.

3. I also skip the onion. I am not really a big onion fan. I do use onion when I am doing some soups or roasts.

4. Get the good corn meal! There is definitely a difference between the more expensive good corn meal and the cheap stuff. Besides this recipe doesn’t call for much of it, so you might as well use the good stuff. I recommend Bob’s Red Mill stone ground fine grind yellow corn meal. If you can’t find the fine grind the medium grind will work too. I have found the medium grind to be more widely available.

5. This is a great dish to cook in an electric skillet. I cook it over a low setting so that I don’t burn anything. Sometimes I will cook it ahead of time in the skillet and bring it to a party or Thanksgiving, where I can simply plug the skillet back in, set to warm, and the corn is perfectly reheated.

6. The turmeric isn’t necessary but I like to add it for the color. It makes it look like the corn is glowing, which I think makes it more appealing.

Give this recipe a try, you will never think of grabbing the can stuff ever again.

Recipe Grade: A

Click here to get the recipe for Alton’s Creamed Corn.