Hey Corn Experts!

[Cowgirl]

Last weekend I picked 4 ears of corn from the garden. We grew corn in my mom's garden, but it only grew small ears. I was so excited because my ears (corn ) were nice and big. Anyhoo, I boiled them and they tasted ok, but not great. They were also a little starchy maybe. The kernels kinda stuck to my teeth, and it wasn't as flavorful as I'd hoped.

So, did I leave the ears on the stalks too long? Not long enough? Here's a picture.

And I picked the biggest ears, but the rest seem on the smaller side. Should I go ahead and pick them (assuming I waited too long on the first ones)?

silver queen ?

[Cowgirl]

Originally Posted by toppick08

silver queen ?

Silver Princess

Go with Ambrosia next time (bi-colored), and yes, pick the ears that are left....

[Cowgirl]

Originally Posted by toppick08

Go with Ambrosia next time (bi-colored), and yes, pick the ears that are left....

I have a ton of seed left, so I'll be planting Silver Princess until I'm old and gray. I'll go ahead and pick the rest.

[dn0121]

Is it organic?

[Cowgirl]

Originally Posted by dn0121

Is it organic?

No. The seed is treated, and it had conventional fertilizer. I haven't treated it with anything else though.

[JoeMac]

I have heard if you leave the ears on the stalk for too long the sugars start converting to starches and loose a lot of the taste. I believe there was an article in the Enterprise last year about this and a lot of growers where switching to Silver King because it stored longer.

[jedi2814]

Originally Posted by Cowgirl

Last weekend I picked 4 ears of corn from the garden. We grew corn in my mom's garden, but it only grew small ears. I was so excited because my ears (corn ) were nice and big. Anyhoo, I boiled them and they tasted ok, but not great. They were also a little starchy maybe. The kernels kinda stuck to my teeth, and it wasn't as flavorful as I'd hoped.

So, did I leave the ears on the stalks too long? Not long enough? Here's a picture.

And I picked the biggest ears, but the rest seem on the smaller side. Should I go ahead and pick them (assuming I waited too long on the first ones)?

Yup - the kernels are too big. Once the the silk turns brown the ears don't get any bigger, only the kernels do. If you let it go too long it is no longer sweet. Depending on conditions you should pull the ears no more than a week after the silks brown to keep it sweet, not starchy.