This afternoon, I went into the back garden to find that half of my corn had been toppled. It was windy yesterday evening but never would I have imagined that something like this could happen. I'd started my corn indoors this year. I wonder if transplanted corn is more susceptible to this sort of thing.
Not really knowing what to do, I hammered some stakes into the ground at the end of each row and tied the corn stalks to a double length of string.
Getting the stalks upright again was not easy. And it didn't help that it was incredibly hot and humid this afternoon. I tried my best not to snap the large fragile leaves in the process. Hopefully, the roots weren't too badly damaged by the toppling either. Whether this support system will be sufficient, only time will tell I guess.
It happens, yours should be fine. I was reading a news article this week, after we had some 45 mph winds, about an entire field of corn being down. It had righted itself by the next day, with no help from the farmer. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThe corn still looks healthy (The green is very vibrant). For a moment, I thought you were going to say there is another groundhog!! I hope your corn recovers!
ReplyDeleteHill it up. An extra couple of inches really makes a difference.
ReplyDeleteI haven't grown corn in years, but it seems to be a common corn problem. I'm hoping my sunflowers don't bite the dust, but so far so good. I know they will have more trouble once they are in full bloom though.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the farmer man I walked around with, his plants were flattened in a storm. It took a few weeks, but they righted themselves. Don't worry unless the stalks are cracked.
ReplyDeleteI've never seen it either unless the field was flooded.
ReplyDeletenellie
I have to stake my corn every year here on the Front Range. Thunderstorms with high winds and hail are our usual culprit. They always turn out fine. I haven't had them self-right, though. Wonder if I should wait for them to do that....
ReplyDeleteHopefully they stay up this time. At least the stalks don't look crushed.
ReplyDeleteI tried the same think last year (corn started indoors) and I had the same problem. I also ended up using string and stakes. It worked out fine in the end.
ReplyDeleteCorn that has not been hilled is always more susceptible to blow down like that. As noted though, it is actually not a big deal and your solution looks like it will effectively give your plants support. I start my corn indoors and always just plant them deeper when setting out - which helps reduce the future potential of knockdown. It still happens once in a while, but I never lose the crop from it.
ReplyDeleteMine fell over in the exact same way, just some around the edges of the block.... I can see where there are roots up above ground so although right now they are just wedged up with random pots against the side of the bed, im gonna try the hilling method ive been reading about...hope it works!
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