🌽 How to Grow the Best Corn!

Corn is an amazingly satisfying crop to grow...but there are a few key tips you need to know in order to grow it really well.

Perhaps you have tried growing corn in the past, only to discover that pests or diseases have spoiled your crop, or that they have toppled over in the wind? Perhaps you found that the kernels just didn't ripen or that the cobs tasted bland?

Well, this is the video that will solve all of those problems and help you to grow your best corn crop EVER!

Get ready for a BUMPER HARVEST with Ben's top tips on how to avoid common corn problems.

If you love growing your own food, why not take a look at our online Garden Planner which is available from several major websites and seed suppliers:
and many more...

[aserioussalamander]

I suffer from panic attacks and always love watching this guy. Calms me down. I started my own vegetable garden with chilis and chives

[robinnicholas]

I’ve been growing sweet corn for nearly 40 years and can’t believe how much Ive just learnt

[devourer]

Tip: if you find any one corn plant growing two healthy ears, only save seeds from that one. Eventually you will have more and more plants growing two ears. Twice as much corn.

[jwrightgardening]

I have a short growing season so I have to start my corn inside. I found that using toilet paper tubes as pots works really well. I don't make them into pots, I just set the whole tube on a tray and pack damp dirt into them. Once it's packed in, the dirt doesn't fall from the bottom, kind of like a soil block. The tubes are nice and tall so I get deeper roots started than in a typical starter tray. And the tubes disintegrate quite quickly once they are planted out, much faster than a peat pot.

[Wonderland_Homestead]

You are my favorite gardener on youtube. Steraight to the point, packed with useful information, and calming.

[tulipsmoran]

Hi Ben - I'm a seasoned gardener and each time I watch one of your videos I pick up a tip. The oil drench after polination is a new one for me - thanks!

[leslie-lynnesinkey]

I've used the "combing" the silks like a doll's hair with the piece of tassel as the "comb, " and it works amazingly well for my little plot (6 plants per sowing--otherwise it's more than even I can eat!). I also tuck the tassel piece upright in the silks or nearby leaves, so that any additional pollen that comes loose drops right onto the silks. I've had amazing corn, filled right to the tips! Thanks so much for the suggestion!

[diannaburton-ez]

I have been gardening for 40 years, most of them planting a few cosmos flowers in the corn patch. I haven’t had any worms in my corn since applying this plant in the corn.

[krmium]

You're the Alton Brown of the gardening YouTube game. Great content no bs

[priayief]

My tips: I've grown corn in seed cells for transplanting, as you advised in your video. But I plant much closer together: two plants in each square foot. I don't grow a lot of corn and I use 4' square raised beds. To prevent stalks from falling over, I install a horizontal trellis made of wood with 1' square spaces directly over each square foot of corn - the trellis is suspended about 18 inches and supported by wood posts attached to the sides of the bed.

To ensure good pollination I simply vigorously shake the stalks when they are producing pollen and tassels. You can actually see the pollen floating down toward the silks.

As for feeding, the seedlings are planted in a 3 or 4 inch layer of compost. I add a liquid fish fertilizer about every three weeks when the stalks are well-established.

[melanielinkous]

I used to be young and fun. Now I get excited learning about corn. 😂

[a.dalton]

I live in Mississippi and grow sweet corn every year. I hill my corn rows and plant in squares, direct sow and sometimes mix in sunflowers or vine peas/beans we have strong west winds sometimes tornadoes here in summer and thunderstorms that will sometimes knock down a few stalks exposing roots, just cover the root with some dirt and the stalks will usually stand back up on its own in a few days provided it isnt snapped or broken . thanks for the info on the pest and pollenating, I learned some things I will try .

[mikkihesson]

i remember when i was 3 or 4 i planted corn in the sandbox that was built under my playhouse. my mom said it wouldnt grow there bc of the sand and it having very little light and told me not to get too excited about it. i watered it every day and it did grow! i dont remember much beyond that, i dont think any corn cobs actually came of it or anything but i made five plants and they got two or three feet high and i was so happy! it probably only took root bc the sand was directly on top of the soil below. ive always loved growing a few small things here and there, flowers and vines and pretty little things. im ready to tackle the big one now, im making my vegetable garden this year!

[guillermogarcia]

I plant my corn seeds among black beans and pumpkin, we call it in Mexico Milpa and is an ancient system of farming!! I recommend to use bocashi to feed the soil before start.

[katherinewright]

Your veg beds are wonderful, good info given about sweetcorn. This video seems more professional and you give more information in a less rushed presentation. Much better to enjoy and watch.

[jacquelinehoward]

I'm planning to grow my first corn this year. Actually, I want to grow the Three Sisters - a native companion planting tradition. Thanks for the tips! 🇨🇦

[theborderer]

One way of hand pollinating (I always hand pollinate) is to take a paper bag when the tassels are producing pollen, cover the tassels with the paper bag, and shake the tassel. The pollen then falls into the bag. Then take a soft paintbrush, dip it in the pollen, and brush the silks with the pollen on the brush.

It's very tedious and time consuming but does work.

[BlairArnold-ts]

For years I have mostly unsuccessfully fought corn earworms. I tried the oil. I tried some insecticides. There was still earworm damage. Last year I got some GMO seeds from a friend who grows sweet corn commercially that has a BT gene. There was not a single corn earworm in a cob. The BT factor kills them when they bite the husk. Saves a lot of time and works like a charm.

[lorigarden]

Thank you! This is one of the most in-depth videos on growing corn. Live in Northern California where it gets pretty dry. Can't wait to harvest!

[Brick-Morpork]

Hi, not sure if you see comments on old videos but wanted to say that you should definitely consider growing baby gem lettuce with your corn! I had some that I had thinned and placed them in a number of areas of my veg garden to see where it liked to grow and where I planted 1 in each square of my corn grid, they have grown to almost twice the size!