Luremaker
Veteran Member
I am in the same boat as you. The weeds are becoming a bigger headache every year. I was thinking of using a weed wipe loaded with roundup and towing it behind the tractor between the rows. What do you guys think?
Sweet corn pre-emergent
- Thread starter sixdogs
- Start date
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I am in the same boat as you. The weeds are becoming a bigger headache every year. I was thinking of using a weed wipe loaded with roundup and towing it behind the tractor between the rows. What do you guys think?
OP
sixdogs
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2007
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- 13,832
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- Ohio
- Tractor
- Kubota M7040, Kubota MX5100, Deere 790 TLB, Farmall Super C
I have done this weedwiper on other crops and had poor results. It can drip, is difficult to set up and misses most of the weeds anyway. Having been at this for a long time I think the current best path is stated above with some sort of pre-emergent.
For weeds, 2-4-D works fine. The problem is grass.
firefighter9208
Platinum Member
COC???
I checked the corn yesterday and none has come up yet ( only 4 days since planting). Took a knife and dug in the row and found seed that is sprouting. I'll let you guys know as soon as it comes up.
Spent the day yesterday preparing ground for Indian Corn (Ornamental). I purchased 10 # of seed to plant for the stalks and to make the corn into decorations. Hopefully the spraying will work, so I don't have to cultivate. I don't have a cultivator that will work with 36" rows.
Chris
firefighter9208
Platinum Member
I bought two John Deere 71's from a local farmer and restrored them. I planted the first corn in 36" rows, but the planters almost run in the rear tire tracks. I went today and got the metal to build another tool bar to mount the planters on. The tool bar that I bought had the brackets for the 3pt hitch mounted at 30" so I had to mount the planters at 36" to clear the brackets. I'm going to build a toolbar that will allow me to mount the planters at 30" and to move one of the planters to the middle to plant in 60" rows.
I paid for a piece of 2 1/2" (1/4" wall) square tubing 6' long to build the toolbar out of (I ordered it over the phone). When I got on the yard to pick up the tubing the saleman had sold me something that they didn't even have.
I drove almost 50 miles to pick up the tubing. The guy working the yard found a piece of 2 1/2" cold rolled bar that was 8' long. He gave me that instead. I think I came out pretty good.
I'll try to take pictures and start a new thread on building the toolbar.
Chris
Chris
OP
sixdogs
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2007
- Messages
- 13,832
- Location
- Ohio
- Tractor
- Kubota M7040, Kubota MX5100, Deere 790 TLB, Farmall Super C
I used a 30" spacing on mine and set the rear wheels to a 60" center and it put my seed just inside the rear tire track. The 30" also gave a greater mass of plants to keep the weeds down. My brackets didn't interfere but it can be a problem.
My method for weed control in sweet corn is:
1. Work the ground as early as I can in the spring (chisel plow and finish disc)
2. After a couple of rain showers and warm weather small weeds will begin to sprout. I hit them with roundup (not the residual version!!). This will usually take out any grasses that Prowl won't catch.
3. 1 to 2 weeks later, if no weeds exist, I plant (flex 71 planter).
4. Once corn is up (Leaf stages 1 -3) I spray with prowl 3.3EC (and 2,4-d if weeds exist). I try to minimize the corn's exposure to Prowl as it can intefere with root development on sweet corn. Especially the super sweet varieties.
5. I won't usually have to put down any more Prowl the rest of the season. I plant my corn on 30" rows, so crop cover shades out all but the hardiest of weeds that get by the Prowl.
6. Flame weed any grasses that start to come back or use hand applied roundup down the rows being careful not to get any on the corn plants.
Once the corn is putting on ears, I don't apply any chemicals other than Sevin (insecticide) and even that is only if I need to. Then in the fall, I burn any weeds/grasses down with roundup and wait until next spring.
I do this same procedure, minus the 2,4-d, for my green beans, tomatoes, strawberries, etc as Prowl is listed for almost all garden veggies and fruits.
1. Work the ground as early as I can in the spring (chisel plow and finish disc)
2. After a couple of rain showers and warm weather small weeds will begin to sprout. I hit them with roundup (not the residual version!!). This will usually take out any grasses that Prowl won't catch.
3. 1 to 2 weeks later, if no weeds exist, I plant (flex 71 planter).
4. Once corn is up (Leaf stages 1 -3) I spray with prowl 3.3EC (and 2,4-d if weeds exist). I try to minimize the corn's exposure to Prowl as it can intefere with root development on sweet corn. Especially the super sweet varieties.
5. I won't usually have to put down any more Prowl the rest of the season. I plant my corn on 30" rows, so crop cover shades out all but the hardiest of weeds that get by the Prowl.
6. Flame weed any grasses that start to come back or use hand applied roundup down the rows being careful not to get any on the corn plants.
Once the corn is putting on ears, I don't apply any chemicals other than Sevin (insecticide) and even that is only if I need to. Then in the fall, I burn any weeds/grasses down with roundup and wait until next spring.
I do this same procedure, minus the 2,4-d, for my green beans, tomatoes, strawberries, etc as Prowl is listed for almost all garden veggies and fruits.
