Speciality vegetables are a niche in the produce industry not often exploited by the aver age grower. The production of such crops is often input inten sive and the markets are often selective and small. The perfect crop would be one that is easy to produce, requires less input than comparable crops, and is easy to market with local users. Baby com fits most of the above criteria and is considered by some a specially vegetable. It is not being currently pro duced in large quantity in the U.S.; most of the baby com is imported from Taiwan and Thailand. It is accepted in the restaurant trade as a fresh item and on salad bars as a pickled vegetable and is used quite extensively in oriental cooking. It requires less chemical input than standard sweet com and matures under a wide range conditions of growing. In fact, any good sweet com producer is capable of baby com produc tion. Unlike sweet com, how ever, only physical harvesting is currently being employed. For the sweet com producers relying on hand labor for harvest, this is not a problem. Soil conditions: Optimum conditions for sweet com result in optimum condition for baby com. Planting dates should be based on cultivars to be planted (su vs. se, sh 2). Results indicate that for central Pennsylvania, the last planting should be before Tune 20. Lack of soil moisture and high soil tempera tures after June 20 usually result in poor stands. Fertility: The short growing season for baby com (from BOYDELL FARMS 302 lona Rd., Lebanon, PA 17042 Phone: 717-272-8943 Baby Corn A Viable Production Possibility 50-60 days) allows for a reduc tion in total nitrogen applica tion. Typical sweet com recom mendations for nitrogen are 110-125 pounds per acre; for baby com production 80-100 pounds per acre is sufficient because ear fill at maturity is not necessary. It is necessary though to supply enough nitro gen to allow the plant to remain upright through multiple hand harvests. Popcorn varieties do require the upper range of nitro gen (90-100) because of the longer days to maturity (typi cally 70-90 days). Applying less than 80 pounds per acre of nitrogen is not recommended for baby com production. Variety selection: Com var ieties that produce multiple ears should be selected for local growing conditions. Most pop corn varieties as well as some sweet com varieties will pro duce multiple ears. Ear charac teristics should also be consid ered if the crop is to be sold for fresh use. A slender, tapered ear with a bright yellow color is important to most users. In addition, stalk strength is criti cal for multiple harvest. Pop corn varieties typically have sturdier stalks. Plant population: Varieties react to spacing by either pro ducing more or fewer ears per plant. It has been demonstrated that with certain varieties more plants can be planted per acre and not affect the yield. A 4-to 6-inch spacing between plants seems to be acceptable for most varieties. Standard spacing between rows (30-36 inch) is recommended for baby com production. Cultural practices: Standard sweet com herbicide applica tions are acceptable for baby com production. Insecticide applications, however, can be substantially reduced. The ini tial treatments for seed com maggot and flea beetles should be maintained, but for the most part, applications for control of Japanese beetles and com ear worm arc not necessary. The crop is harvested before or at silking, eliminating the condi tions that attract these pests. Harvest: Harvesting is the most labor intensive part of FOR LOW-COST VELVETLEAF AND FOXTAIL CONTROL IN CORN, USE A PROWL TANK MIX PROWL See The aEBIhFNTfII Dealer Nearest You Or For More Information Call Your Cyanamid Rep. . ' Mike Fleming -wESTE® 1 * Jim O’Bryan t 5 717-627-0661 pA 814-667-3648 Pa. Master Corn Growers Associati EFFECTIVE CONTROL PROWL® herbicide with atrazine stops velvetleaf and foxtail from choking your young com plants. This tank mix gives you top perfor mance and real economy in com weed control. EASY APPLICATION Apply the PROWL tank mix preemergence, or early postemergence after the com is up, but no bigger than the four-leaf stage. Weeds should be no more than an inch tall. Do NOT incorporate PROWL in com. See us today. We have the products and the service to help your farming operation. Always read and follow label directions carefully. ™ Trademark, American Cyanamid Company © 1991 MBBU _UffUV Corn Talk, Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 17, 1993-P«ge €«N mi IfIWS PENNSYLVANIA MASTER CORN GROWERS ASSOC., INC. producing baby com. All harvesting is done by hand because of the lack of a viable mechanical harvester. Because there is no degradation of sugars associated with baby com, harvest can take place any time during the day. But to maintain product quality, cool ing should be considered. If this is not possible, the crop should at least be placed in the shade after harvest in the field and in storage prior to delivery. Plant stalks should be held firmly and the ear removed with a minimum of damage to promote the formation of a sec ond or third ear. Plants produc ing weak steins should not be selected for baby corn production. Timing of harvest is based on the physical characteristics of the ear. With long-tapered pop corn varieties, ears with a pro jected finished length of over 8 inches, harvest should begin with about 1/4-1/2 inch silk showing above the leaves. If a 4- to 6-inch ear is desired, harvest must occur before silk appearance. Where trade names are used, no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by the Cooperative Extension Service is implied. % V»-*vg f \ 225
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