I’m 100% Corn Fed and Totally OK with It

I’m a pretty easygoing dude but a few things get under my skin. One of those things is sweet corn varieties available at farm stands and farmer’s markets. Mainly the names of the varieties. This very well may be my personal gripe but when I see “Butter and sugar” spray painted on a sign I go crazy. (I know, I’m crazy too but really?). Lumping all sweet corn into two buckets (bushels?) helps no one.

I snapped this yesterday as I was driving home near my house. This isnt a farm but rather a ‘pop-up’ farm stand every summer in an abandoned lot. I assume everthing here comes from the Boston vegetable market but it is rather typical of what one seees everywhere.

 I am neither, although there is hardly a corn variety that I don’t like, for fresh eating, I prefer a new hybrid by far (and not a super-sweet sugar-enhanced one from the 1980’s either). Like most corn geeks I like a balance between corn flavor, starch, and some sugar, but mostly I like the popping texture that comes with some of the newest hybrids when you eat them straight off of the cob. There is nothing like it. If you’ve ever enjoyed very fresh corn cooked straight from the field, you know what I am talking about. The breakthrough of SE or Sugar Extender (sugar enhanced) corn was a big breakthrough in the late 20th century, and while those varieties are far better than old sweet corn varieties, they were bred for long-life on the supermarket shelf, and many of us just think that they are too sweet when compared against new Augmented Shrunken SH2 genetics or even Synergistic varieties.

Whah? Are you going all ‘GMO’ on me Matt?

No worries. I shall explain in far more detail than any human needs in this post. Which is probably why my publisher cut this chapter on corn from my upcoming book MASTERING THE ART OF  VEGETABLE GARDENING (shameless plug – avail on Amazon now, but not shipped until it is published in December). This chapter should give you an idea on how I approach veg gardening in the book, but know that I’ve edited this down quite a bit.

I am hardly a normal consumer of corn (I am also hardly an expert, but rather a fan).  My history with sweet corn dates back to the 1960’s as I was tutored by a father (a serious corn addict) who demanded excellence when it came to fresh on-the-cob corn varieties.  We would hop with him into our 1969 Country Squire station wagon and drive to certain local farms (somewhere he used to work as a kid) as their fields became ready to pick. He somehow knew what varieties Mr. Allaire or Mr. Salo was planting that year, and he knew the maturity dates. He also would demand that we be allowed out into the field to pick the corn so that it would be of optimum freshness.

‘Illusion’ F1 is a sweet Synergistic corn, available both as organic seed and conventional. It’s our most favortie mid-season corn for the home garden. ‘Sugar and Butter’? It’s probably sold as that.

We were one of those households where sweet corn was considered a complete meal. Dozens would be cooked and that would be supper on any given weeknight in the summer. We would only be allowed to cut corn off of the cobs if it was too old, or if we needed to take it somewhere like on a picnic or to school for lunch.

Dad always believed that white corn was less desirable than yellow corn (which isn’t true, really) but his parents who were born in 1889 only ate white corn. Dad was born in 1914, a time when corn hybridizing was changing things.  While his parents only ate white corn (leaving the yellow ‘cow corn’ for farmers to eat green), dad and his 7 brothers preferred all-yellow corn. The corn of their generation, thanks to a new variety in the 1920’s called ‘Golden Bantam’.

Corn seems to come in styles and follows fashion. Bi-colored corn eventually became more popular than all-yellow corn in the mid-20th century but it was never my fathers favorite. I on the other hand while young wanted white corn, simply because it seemed rare and odd. No one had yet heard of ‘Silver King’. ´ Either that or old-timers confused the new Silver King with an old variety with the same name – a silver dent dry corn that was introduced under the same name in the late 1930’s. ‘Siver King’ was just a SE or sugar enhanced strain of ‘Silver Queen’ (an older SU standard corn). My point is – these are still old late 20th century varieties and we might want to move on from them. With over 125 varieties commonly grown, you probably have moved on but you just don’t know it yet.

When I was a kid in the late 1960s a ‘new’ variety was introduced called ‘Silver King,’ and I can remember thinking that it was cool because it was all white, and it was sweeter than ‘Silver Queen’. The problem was I coudl never get my dad to buy it. Then came Bi-colored corn. “Too fancy and novel,” dad said. It wasnt until bi-color corn started to be marketed under the variety namesthat was more appealing did he try it.  Names then began to be more user firendly and appealing. Thus, ‘sugar & butter’. Unfortunately, the original Sugar and Butter’ is rarely grown today but most if not all bi-colored corn is simply sold under this name.

Blue corn varieties are generally heirloom types and are best for ornamental use. Still, how pretty is this Indigo variety?

WHY CARE ABOUT THE VARIETY NAME WITH CORN?

Wouldnt you want corn that had everything?
Flavor? The perfect balance of starch, sugar, and pop?
Then knowing the variety name is key.

Farm stands and market growers knwo that sweet corn is a cash crop. Even more so today. The race starts in early spring when growers try to get their corn planted earlier than their competitors. This year I noticed Remay floating fabric over an entire field near the farm where I grow veggies. The owner told me that they now plant corn as plugs very early in the spring – weeks before anyone else. Then they cover the fields with floating row covers to protect the seedlings from frost. This gives them a jump on all of the local competition.

A tip for us at home – corn plugs transplant easily and even though I’ve been starting my corn in cell containers for years, it does feel good to know that even the pros are doing it too. A 10 foot by 10 foot plot can hold 100 plants, and a couple of plug trays ensures 100% germination. I just pop the young plants into prepared ground with little effort even as early as mid april. May 5th is the typical sowing date for sweet corn here in Zone 5 New England.

Varieties do matter for both commercial farmers and home growers as date-to-maturity while important, isnt as critical as variety. Does it germinate in cold soil? Will the pollen affect a neighboring plot of corn? Will the stalks grow too tall and shade something else? Will all the corn come in at the same time? Some varieties grow better in early spring, others better in high summer. Some are best for the fall.

Flavor though is often the most important reason why a home grower would want to think long about the variety they are growing. Commercial farmers tend only to choose their crop varieties based on the market. Flavor doesn’t factor in. Ten years ago you never knew the difference between a Brandywine tomato and a Big Girl. Today, you do. You also know the difference between the flavor of a ‘Red Delicious’ apple, vs a sour”GrannySmith’ from the luscious sweetness of a ‘Honeycrisp’. My point is that more and more of us today are informed – we know the difference. We are familiar with the names of some varieties, especially with fruit. We can tell the difference between hype and authenticity. We’ll pay more for something that tastes better but with corn, we are still being told that it’s just all one or two varieties. Odd when there are literally hundreds and hundreds of varieties. It’s time to push farmers, farm stands, supermarkets and buyers to let us know what we are buying.

Home raised popcorn is a fun crop. Just be sure that the ears are pollinated well (by hand with tassels from another plant). This crop was raised in a double row that was hand pollinated last summer. Dry it well though if you plan to pop it.

THE HUNT FOR NEW CORN VARIETIES
Today it’s almost impossible to find the true variety of sweet corn one is buying.  And don”t just tell me that it is something called ‘Butter and Sugar’ or ‘Silver Queen’. I don’t buy that.  Of course, new variety name probably need some tweaking or creativity, and few are any good or helpful. So renaming corn might be in order first. I can’t imagine anyone stopping to buy a dozen ears because they saw a handpainted sign that says ‘NATIVE. SS3778R F1 Corn, NEXT LEFT’. Yay!

Pollinate your corn at home by snapping off a tassel that is dripping with pollen on a dry afternoon, and shake it over the silks which are emergin on the little ears. It;s fun to do, and doesnt hurt the plant. Imagine every silk as a thread that leads to a kernel.

“Try this experiment. The next time you are buying corn, ask the seller what variety it is. (I do this all the time and only once (in Vermont) did I get an honest answer.). Most sellers will just say ‘It’s Butter and Sugar’ or ‘Silver Queen’, even if they know the real name of the variety they are growing. People think those are varieties (they are, but I doubt that this is the variety they are buying), more often than not they are buying a ‘type’of corn, and most growers just sell all bi-color corn as ‘Butter and Sugar’ and all white corn as ‘Silver King or Queen’. At least on the east coast.

Old varieties of dry corn are often superior to newer ones. Here is one case where heirloom really delivers. Green Oaxcan corn makes some of the best cornmeal.

ONE HURDLE TO OVERCOME IS THAT NEW CORN VARIETIES HAVE BAD NAMES
We can’t blame them. Most growers are scared shitless to admit that they actually are growing a variety named something like Mirai® 227 F1 or a brand new patented or registered augmented sugar  gene SH2 or even a new Synergistic corn variety (which may be the best for texture and flavor) because most of thee varieties sound more like insecticide than corn varieties. Names like ‘Vision MXR’, ‘Kickoff’, ‘Illusion’ ‘ Allure’, or ‘Trinity’ isn’t going to get a home chef excited. The folks who name corn really need some help, but then again, they are trying with names like ‘Sugar Pearl’, ‘Sugar Buns’ or ‘Delectable’ – those are names that should capture our attention, but they are so similar to ‘Sugar and Butter’ why confuse people?

Homemade cornmeal is easy to make. I made this last year in my Vitamix blender.

WHAT ABOUT GMO CORN?

If you have any concerns about GMO corn, then do try growing your own dry corn. Beleive me – nothing tastes like home-grown cornmeal. A 100 sq foot bed supplied us with 5 quarts of cornmeal.

There are a few (very few -like 9%) new GMO sweet corn varieties but you are not going to find any in a seed catalog as one would need to go through an agent and then sign a complex licensing agreement with Monsanto or another developer. You should feel safe buying seed anywhere as no GMO seed is available for home growers at all- so relax. Even though a variety may sound ‘sciency’ or technical, it’s not GMO if you are finding it in a seed catalog. This includes Johnny’s Selected Seeds or Burpee.

That said, some GMO sweet corn on-the-ear is showing up in supermarkets, but I imagine that most of this corn is raised in the south for northern markets during the winter. The corn in these cases was bred to have ‘stacked genes’, bundled if you will so that the variety could be resistant to a pre-emergent herbicide or immune to a fungus. While this typically doesn’t bother me, I still wouldn’t want my cornfield to be sprayed with glyphosate or Round-up. You see, it’s not the genetic engineering that concerns me, it’s what they might spray the crop with. That’s where I stand with GMO’s and until I see some data that proves safety one way or another, I would never buy GMO corn at a market. Yet here’s the kicker – I would love to grow GMO corn in my own garden at home – but until they make GMO seed available to home gardeners, this will need to wait. I do appreciate the science of genetic engineering – So-called ‘Franken foods’ don’t scare me at all.  I ‘get’ the science. Breed me a blight-free tomato with the flavor of summer, please. I want that now.

How’s this: Instead of worrying about GMO’s and labeling, why arent we all demanding to at least know the variety name that we are buying? Wouldnt that solve everything?

There are many varieties of dry, heirloom or ornamental corn available today. Each are so rewarding to grow in the homer garden.

IS THERE SUCH A THING AS WILD CORN?

What gets us into trouble with corn is processed food and how much processed corn products enter our food system. We might all agree to try an avoid corn in our food as an additive, as we try to avoid it in pet food, in cattle food and even in chicken food. What the heck happened to being proud of having been corn fed? Has that gone the way that being ‘Milk fed? Probably, but aside from building stong bodies twelve ways, corn can be a part of a balance diet (sic). Come on, what about bourbon or whiskey? How about Cheese doodles or Doritos? We all consume corn but we just justify it in different ways. 🙂

We all know that corn is botanically considered a grass, and that the corn we know today looks nothing like it’s wild ancestors. Like cabbage or cauliflower it was selected from a wild species of maize found in Mexico over centuries of natural and human selection. Like most every vegetable we eat today it too has been essentially genetically modified over time by us makeing selections of our favortie traits, and these are passed on.

According to the National Science Foundation and molecular biologists, the wild ‘corn’ was a branched grass now known to botanists as Balsas teosinte.  With its hard seed coat or shell, the idea that we could revert to growing wild corn is unrealistic. Yet corn stands as one of the greatest achievement of mankind, and regardless of your political or environmental position regarding the culture of corn, we as a species probably wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for corn.

This is a variety isnt ‘Butter and Sugar’ but it is called ‘Xtra-Tender 2171- F1 Hybrid grown from organic seed. It’s an SH2 or ‘Augmented Shrunken Gene variety. Not GMO, even though it sounds like it. It’s worth growing for both flavor and texture in the home garden, not to mention disease resistance to ‘Stewart’s Wilt’ and Leaf Blight.

IS CORN WORTH GROWING AT HOME?

EMBRACE BOTH NEW AND OLD VARIETIES OF CORN

Variety names are either organized by genotype or by ‘type’ and without a chart to follow, few if any of us know the difference between an SE, SH2 or SU let alone an Augmented Shrunken SH2. I mean – who would buy that?

Examples include SU (sugar) and SE (Sugar Enhanced) and SH2 (Augmented Shrunken). Augmented Shrunken, by the way, is just a bad name for a gene that simply shrivels away—clearly, scientists weren’t focused on marketing at that time. The only downside to the SH2 and some SE varieties is that the pollen drift can and will affect the quality of the other – in the same season (unlike squash). All varieties must be separated or the kernels will vary in quality. In the home, garden be sure to space corn crops at leave 60 feet away from each other—remember, corn is wind pollinated.