Color, the Veggie Garden

[journey11]

That's beautiful corn @journey11 ! It probably has a long dtm though right?
I would love to grow that.

The website says 85/100 DTM (85 being ready for roasting ears?), but I have it written down that I planted mine on May 20th, which equals 124 days to harvest for me. And technically, they could have/should have stayed on the stalks to dry another week or two, but I'm drying them the rest of the way indoors. I don't know...maybe it doesn't hurt them to finish drying under a few frosts? Anybody know how that all works out? I won't see frost here for another month, so I've never cut it too close on the DTM to know.

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i didn't keep track of when i planted the corn this year. i thought i planted it late May. everywhere i read about this corn it says it takes about 110 days to dry down. i just picked mine early since we had a raccoon hovering around the neighborhood and i didn't want to loose it all to that over-sized, fluffy, vulture!

 

[thistlebloom]

124 days would be in my dreams only. The kids strawberry popcorn seems to be taking it's time. It's supposed to be 100 dtm, but I keep peeking at one of the ears and it's still not coloring up and the stalks are as green as ever.
It was planted the middle of May, so it should be 100 days now, but I haven't officially counted.

I wonder about the frost affecting it too, we've had a little nip, but nothing hard enough to do much damage. I'm sweating it because I want the kids to have corn to pop, and it's a race now with fall rains and freezes.

 

[digitS']

Days to Maturity does not mean much ...

When temperatures drop below 50°f every night, many plants go into a holding pattern. Nothing changes, or it changes at a very slow rate.

It gripes me that we allow the seed companies to hold onto this measurement standard. My understanding is that they don't , for many crop varieties grown in farm fields. Farmers want more accuracy before committing to new varieties

I can't even figure how they come up with the DTM numbers, since every year, the weather is different. Growing Degree Days (Heat Units) are a matter of one season of record keeping.

Okay, I'll try to think colorful thoughts visiting the veggie garden today.

Steve

 

[thistlebloom]

You're right about that Steve. There are such wide differences in everybody's garden, with general climate norms and micro-climate exceptions. Even though your's and my gardens are in the same zone, we have different grow times on a lot of things.
I guess we just have to go with something that seems average for our growing season and find varieties that work for us most years.

 

[journey11]

Since germination is also affected by soil temps, coming up quicker in warmer soil for most things, I wonder if DTM should really be calculated from the day it sprouts? I've always counted from the day I planted it, but maybe I'm doing it wrong.

 

[thistlebloom]

I know some things count from the time you set the plants out, so you could be right about that Journey. I know someone who use to start her corn early and transplant it. I wonder if that is a viable option, or will corn sulk if it's transplanted?

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i've bought started corn before since the local garden centers sell it like that. i never had luck with it that way but i realized corn was more water dependent than the area i was planting it in at that time. now i've found their niche in my garden and i will keep it going over that side of the property where it gets plenty of moisture and pampering when it gets in the dry season here.

 

[barefootgardener]

Here's my McCormack's Blue Giant Dent corn, just harvested yesterday. There are more unshucked ears beneath, but I got excited and shucked all of the big ones. It needs more time drying down, then I'm going to grind it for flour. The darker ears are the drier ones. It will retain a light blue color even when cooked.

View attachment 9348

It made huge corn stalks, over 10' high, with 3 ears per stalk, but really only two each made for nice big ears with the third being pretty small and not well developed. I could have fertilized more. And the corn ear worms didn't find me this year. Yay!

Ava's studying early American history this year, so we'll have some nice husks to make dolls with. My mom taught me to make them when I was a kid and we'd have them for decoration for the Thanksgiving table.

I'll post some pics of our blue tortillas when I get to make them too.

How beautiful Journey! I cant wait to see your blue corn flour and tortillas.

I grew some Black Aztec corn this year, but sadly it did not produce as well as yours..

My mother taught us how to make corn husk dolls as children also. She used to make some older ladies with the corn husk dolls and make dresses and hats for them. She gave me one twenty or so years ago.