When to plant early glutinous corn?

Early glutinous corn is an early-maturing variety of glutinous corn. This corn is fragrant and delicious when eaten fresh. Compared with sweet corn, the endosperm of sweet corn contains higher water-soluble polysaccharides, while glutinous corn does not have this characteristic. In addition, early glutinous corn has better quality and is resistant to many diseases, such as small spot disease and large spot disease. So when should early glutinous corn be planted? Let’s take a look below.

1. When should early glutinous corn be sown?

The sowing time of early glutinous corn can be flexibly adjusted according to temperature and market demand. For example, in late February, you can use small sheds or hotbeds to grow seedlings, in early March you can use mulch covering for direct seeding, and from early April to late July you can use open field direct seeding. This phased sowing method ensures the supply of glutinous corn from June to October.

2. Methods of planting glutinous corn

1. Choose good varieties

You can choose varieties with a relatively short growing period, wide adaptability, strong disease resistance, beautiful ear shape, and good taste of fresh fruit ears for planting, such as: Yunuo series, Jingkenuo series, Suyu series, etc.

2. Isolation planting

Corn is a cross-pollinated crop and is easily mixed. In order to improve the commercial quality of fresh corn cobs, they are planted separately from conventional corn. The method is: time isolation. The planting time is isolated from that of conventional corn, with a difference of about 20 days in the sowing period, so that the flowering time is inconsistent and the pollination time is staggered. Spatial isolation, 300 to 500 meters away from conventional corn planting areas to prevent wind and insect pollination. Physical barriers, such as rivers, ponds, villages, and forests, are used to prevent pollen from spreading to each other.

3. Reasonable density planting

The row spacing can be 1 meter, the nest spacing can be 0.33-0.38 meters, with two plants in one nest, and 3500-4000 plants can be planted per acre.

4. Transplant seedlings immediately

When the seedlings grow to 4-5 leaves, immediately supplement and transplant them to ensure that the seedlings are neat and symmetrical. After corn jointing, it is easy for ears to grow from the base, affecting the growth of the main stem. It must be checked at any time, prevented early, and removed early.

5. Fertilization

Glutinous corn is a high-fertilizer crop, so it needs sufficient fertilizer and water. Generally, 2000kg of soil residue fertilizer, 10-12kg of urea, 35-40kg of superphosphate, and 6kg of potassium chloride can be applied as base fertilizer per mu. After entering the jointing stage, 7-8kg of urea mixed with 2000kg of clear manure water can be applied as topdressing per mu. When glutinous corn enters the trumpet stage, that is 40-50 days after sowing, fertilizer can be applied heavily to attack the buds. 17-20kg of urea and 8kg of potassium chloride mixed with 2000kg of clear manure water can be applied per mu for irrigation.

6. Prevention of pests and diseases

During this period, we should focus on preventing and controlling the glutinous corn borer. Generally, during the trumpet stage, physical control can be carried out by using solar energy, frequency-vibration insecticidal lamps, yellow plastic board traps, etc. During this period, the use of chemical pesticides needs to be controlled to help reduce pesticide residues and ensure the safety of glutinous corn for consumption.

7. Intertillage and weeding

At this time, the corn enters the grain filling stage. Make sure the soil is moist and spray foliar fertilizer appropriately to ensure the healthy growth of the flower spike. At this time, the ears are heavy and the stems are shaking, which may cause the seedlings to fall over easily, so the soil should be loosened for safety protection.

8. Harvest at the right time

Generally, it can be harvested 30-35 days after pollination. Harvesting too early will easily result in insufficient filling, insufficient stickiness and low yield, while harvesting too late will lack freshness and fragrance.

That’s it