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- From: "Jeffery Blake" <echoecho AT bedford.heartland.net>
- To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
- Subject: Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn
- Date: Mon, 5 Feb 2001 15:25:26 -0600
Yes. Thanks everyone for the help on this matter. Do you need additional N
application following the peas? How do they affect soil moisture? I am
going to try vetch/rye or clover/rye or straight vetch next year. It seems
like the best alternative. Might try all three. How does tillage effect
the availabilty of N in the spring on a winter cover crop? Is there a trade
off between no-till and tillage in soils managed with legume/small grain
cover crops?
----- Original Message -----
From: "robert schuler" <sunnfarm AT bellatlantic.net>
To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
Sent: Sunday, February 04, 2001 9:24 AM
Subject: Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn
> 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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>
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-
Companion Planting in Sweet Corn,
Jeffery Blake, 02/03/2001
- <Possible follow-up(s)>
- Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn, Alex McGregor, 02/03/2001
- Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn, Peg Cook, 02/03/2001
- Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn, robert schuler, 02/04/2001
- Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn, Peg Cook, 02/04/2001
- Re: Companion Planting in Sweet Corn, Jeffery Blake, 02/05/2001
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