Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] polypropylene for seed saving?

livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Healthy soil and sustainable growing

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Steve Diver <steved@ipa.net>
  • To: Healthy soil and sustainable growing <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] polypropylene for seed saving?
  • Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2006 09:55:27 -0600 (GMT-06:00)

Hello Carrie -

I'm not reading every post but I came across this one.

It is helpful to explain agricultural practices in more detail.

Likewise, I'm not sure "where" you live, which would
provide an understanding of your climate.

I'm guessing that you are referring to the use of a black
plastic mulch or a geotextile weed barrier laid tightly on the
soil surface, then planting the sweet corn thru holes in the
mulch.

If you're up North, soils stay cool longer and the use
of plastic mulch can help you get crops into production
faster, because the mulch retains solar heat and warms
the soil. The results with warm-season vegetables raised
on plastic mulch are very noticeable and remarkable.

These synthetic mulches are great for controlling weeds.
That is their main advantage.

Frankly, sweet corn is easy to raise in straight rows
in bare soil. Amend the row zone with compost and
rock minerals, create a furrow, plant seed, and cover
the soil back over.

After the seedlings emerge, at some point the soil
will typically crust over..... such as following a rain.
This is when you will also see little weed seedlings
emerge. That is when you take a hand held hoe or
a wheel hoe and stir the soil to break the crust and
dislodge the little weed seedlings. This will also mix
and aerate the soil. Two or three passes with a
wheel hoe is normally sufficient to get the corn "up to
canopy".... around waist height, and then it will grow
so fast it will shade out the weeds.

You can grow 100' rows, 200' rows, or more using
this method.... accomplished much easier with a
wheel hoe vs a hand held hoe.

Fyi, an organic mulch of wheat straw is even better
as an ideal organic practice. You can let the seedlings
emerge, then let the soil crust over once, then cultivate
the soil once or twice to break the crust(s), then apply
the straw mulch. After that, no more weeds.

An organic mulch also provides habitat for worms and
microbes, it cools the soil, and it retains moisture. It
provides all kinds of soil ecosystem effects as it slowly
decomposes, at the interface where organic matter is
in touch with the soil

What was on your mind, Carrie? How many rows and
linear feet of corn where you talking about? What kind
of polypropylene were you talking about?

Steve Diver


>From: Carrie Shepard <carrieshepard@yahoo.com>
>
>My friend suggested growing the corn under polypropylene since it comes in
>varying widths, anyone see any problem with that?
>
> I want to start growing 3 types of corn (a Hopi blue, Strawberry popcorn,
> and Golden Bantam) and save the seeds.
>
> Carrie
>








Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page