My Sweet Corn Reviews

[Luremaker]

With summer approaching I am getting ready to order my corn seed. I have been planting between 1 and 2 acres of sweet hybrid corn for the the past five summers now with varying results. I live in Grey County, Ontario (zone 5) where we usually have cool springs because of our proximity to Lake Huron and Georgian Bay and long warm summers with lots of thunder storms beginning late July. Our area is likely windier than most. I usually plant the last week of May or the first week of June.




Here is a list of sweet corn hybrids that I have grown, in patches 1/8 acre of more, along with a short review of my experiences growing them. I'd like to hear your experiences with different sweet corn hybrids, especially ones planted in northern cooler areas. This summer I plan to plant peaches and cream, trinity, and superstar and will consider other recommended varieties.

Sunnyvee su: (60 day) Yellow Grown one dry and hot summer only - very quick to germinate and developed into a rather thin short plant around 5' tall. Wind could actually knock the plants over. Ears were around 7 inches long. Taste was average. Raccoons developed a love for this corn and had raiding parties every night. Around 70% of the plants produced harvestable ears, I picked less than 10%. I am unlikely to replant Sunnyvee.

Bodacious se: (72 day) Yellow Grown two summers - Grown one dry and hot summer and last summer which was much cooler than average. developed into a huge thick plant over 7' tall. Easily withstood our winds. Ears were around 8 inches long. Taste was above average. Raccoons avoided this patch completely even though is was only a short distance from the Sunnyvee patch. Over 90% of the plants produced harvestable ears. I would be happy to plant Bodacious in the future but people seem to prefer bi-color corn.

Sugar Baby se: (61 day) Bi Color Grown one summer only - developed into an average plant around 6' tall. Easily with stood our winds. Ears were between 7 & 8 inches long. Taste was average. Raccoons avoided this patch completely. Around 60% of the plants produced harvestable ears.

Peaches and Cream se: (70 Day) Bi Color - Grown five summers - my overall favorite. Developed into an average plant around 6' tall. Easily withstood our winds. Ears average 7 inches long. Taste was above average. Raccoons would visit a few times a week but caused little damage. Around 85% of the plants produced harvestable ears..

[Oleozz]

That's a nice pic of your corn. We raise and sell what people in this area are familiar with; Silver King (white), Incredible (yellow), and Ambrosia (bicolor). The Silver King and Incredible are extremely popluar. All three varieties are SE and have a fairly long shelf life. The King and Incredible produce big ears and have about an 84 day growing period. We have some older folks who buy the Ambrosia and they claim it is easier to digest.

[scott_vt]

That's a nice pic of your corn. We raise and sell what people in this area are familiar with; Silver King (white), Incredible (yellow), and Ambrosia (bicolor). The Silver King and Incredible are extremely popluar. All three varieties are SE and have a fairly long shelf life. The King and Incredible produce big ears and have about an 84 day growing period. We have some older folks who buy the Ambrosia and they claim it is easier to digest.

Good Evenin Oleozz,
My Uncle Dave grows a fair sized patch of Silver Queen every year, thats located in East Wells, Vt. We are at about 1200 ft above sea level, so in a cool enviroment also... This variety seems to grow quite well here and is very tasty IMO !

[Duffster]

Just picked up our Bodacious seed last week.

[Oleozz]

Hi Scotty----From what I've been told the Silver King is hardier and more disease resistant than the Queen and the King also has a higher sugar content. There are folks around who advertise their corn as Silver Queen (since it's such a recognizable name) but in reality are selling the King.

[Luremaker]

Around here everyone wants bi-color sweet corn. I'll have to see if I can find Silver King seed just to give it a try as I have never grown a white corn variety. I am hoping to find a bi-color which can be picked in late July. Does anyone know if seeds can be mailed across the border?

[westbrooklawn]

Fifty plus years ago when I was a young pup, we always went to the local farms (S.E. NY and Northern NJ), to buy fresh sweet corn. Our favorite was a brand called "Luther Hill"... small ears with a white kernel. Don't know if it is even available any more, especially with all the hybrids and engineered varieties. If you can find seed, I would highly recommend planting some to see how you like it.

[charlz]

Gotta Have It: (78 day) Bi Color 'Augmented Shrunken' Not sure what that type is. Grown three summers. Thick plant about 6' tall that withstands our wind storms easily. Ears are 7-8 inches long. Very sweet and holds flavor for days in the refrigerator. I can harvest a patch over 2 weeks or so before it is too far along. Must have warm soils to germinate, if you plant too early or if the weather turns it won't germinate properly, I can't plant until mid June or so. Also needs a fairly shallow planting depth, about 1". Freezes well with very good flavor. Downside is it ruins you for store bought corn so you have to load up the freezer in the summer

[BungeeII]

My father-in-law looked for Silver King seed up here, but could not find it. (That's what he always planted down in KY)

We have 2 gardens and have only grown corn 1 year. One seed was Illini Xtra Sweet. Good stuff! Hearty plant, good yield, wonderful sweet corn flavor. Has frozen very well, too.

The other was Serendipity. Smaller plant, smaller ears, smaller kernels. Sweeter but not "good eating" like we enjoyed with the Illini.

We'll plant more Illini this year, and probably a bit of Bodacious, as it was recommended some time after we planted ours.

[Oleozz]

My father-in-law looked for Silver King seed up here, but could not find it. (That's what he always planted down in KY)

We have 2 gardens and have only grown corn 1 year. One seed was Illini Xtra Sweet. Good stuff! Hearty plant, good yield, wonderful sweet corn flavor. Has frozen very well, too.

The other was Serendipity. Smaller plant, smaller ears, smaller kernels. Sweeter but not "good eating" like we enjoyed with the Illini.

We'll plant more Illini this year, and probably a bit of Bodacious, as it was recommended some time after we planted ours.

You can order Silver King from this place. They also have a lot of useful info on the different types of sweet corn.
seeds@jordanseeds.com Price for a pound is about $10.75.