Growing Sweetcorn in Your Spanish Garden

General Items
Crop Rotations
Crop Succession

Sweetcorn - Maiz Dulce

One of the reasons I like growing sweetcorn is just to see something that is quite different to anything else in the garden, and due to their height, they break up the appearance of what can be a boring looking garden, particularly early in the year.

A Sweetcorn Patch

The plant, which is really a large grass, produces male flowers in the form of a tassel at the top (on a plant that may grow to 2 m high) and the female cobs bearing the grain, in the angles of the lower leaves.
As the part we are going to eat is the seed produced on the cob, fertilisation is very important (no fertilisation no seed). If you simply grow a single row of sweetcorn, the fertilisation process may not be very efficient and the cobs may not fully form. For this reason, it is best to grow several rows (well at least 2) beside each other, so there can be fertilisation between the rows as well as down the rows.

Cobs almost ready to Pick

The cobs enlarge quite quickly but it is difficult to tell when they are ready to eat from outside their wrapping of leaves. It will be necessary to carefully peal some the leaves back to judge the ripeness of the grain. Pick them too early and there won't be much there, too late and they will have a mealy texture.

You may only have a period of 2-3 weeks when they are just right - enjoy them when you have them, or, if you have the option, they should freeze well.

Corn on the Cob Ready to Cook