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market-farming - Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn

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  • From: robert schuler <sunnfarm AT bellatlantic.net>
  • To: market farming <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn
  • Date: Sun, 04 Feb 2001 10:24:38 -0500


Hello Jeffery, I specialize in sweet corn but not organic corn, I have always
tried to
grow my own Nitrogen and have tried your examples, first corn doesn't like to
share
space with any other growing plant, 25% weed or companion will reduce yield
50% and 50%
companion will reduce yield 100% because you will get 3/4 size ears and no
tip fill,
moisture stress acts as a magnet for worms, grow your corn on clean
cultivated soil and
broadcast hairy vetch into corn when 2 ft tall, vetch will not compete, then
bush hog
the corn after picking and let vetch grow through stubble, vetch and rye is a
great
combo if seeded by mid September, both will get 3-4 ft tall by late April but
need to be
plowed down, if you use only vetch you will get more N, and you can mow it
flat and
notill into it easily if you have notched coulters cutting vines ahead of
planter, or
you can disc twice over two weeks in April to May and vetch will decompose
very fast due
to low c/n ratio, I like to shallow plow this land the soil is very loose
and flows
nice after vetch.
A lower priced alternative I have been experimenting with is seeding medium
red clover
at 5 lb. per acre, it costs $10 for seed alot cheaper than vetch but not as
good of a N
supplier.
Around here we have a company called Seabrook that makes frozen foods and
they contract
out for peas, the crop is seeded mid to late Feb. and harvested by early
June, the crop
in drilled in 6" rows 250 lb seed with a grain drill, the company comes with
harvesters,
they are bigger then grain combines and cause alot more compaction but
residue provides
a profitable N crop for late season corn which is often part of the rotation
on these
farms hopefully you have a processor in your area...
I like to devote land to regenerate over summer and find group 5 soybeans the
cheapest
crop for this and have had luck with cow peas in the summer heat but they
cost too
much...Good Luck
Sunny Meadow Farm
Bridgeton, NJ.

Jeffery Blake wrote:

> I am working on transitioning to organic or more sustainable sweet corn
> production. In the future I want to fall plant rye and hairy vetch as a
> winter cover crop to reduce weed pressure and to fix nitrogen. Do I have
> any alternatives for Spring or summer seeded Nitrogen fixing companion
> crops. I have considered cowpeas, field peas, and field beans. I want
> Nitrogen fixing while maintaining good ear size. I wouldn't mind cutting
> back population. I raise about 20 acres and have high residue cultivators,
> planter and a heavy disk.
> My thoughts are spring seeded peas, which I understand fix about 80 lbs N ?.
> I would plant succession of sweet corn between May 1 and June 15. I am not
> sure my planter would no till into standing peas, might be to much growth.
> so could I mow then no till, could i strip till ahead of the planter, or
> should i just disk it down and plant. if i disk then the peas might not
> have fixed nearly so much N on the first planting. They should be fully
> mature my June 1 I think. Another alternative would be to seed feild beans
> into standing sweet corn, but would that get enough N to the corn. Would it
> out compete the corn. the vines would make weed control difficult and maybe
> the picking. I wonder if that would work for feild corn? Probably wouldn't
> go through the combine. Pea seed is cheap field bean seed is about $1 a
> pound. Does anybody have any experieces trying anything like this? Any
> thoughts.
>
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