Handy
Corn De-Silking Brush
Click Picture for More Info
IMPORTANT NOTE: Nearly all of the varieties of corn that we
carry are no longer being produced commercially which makes them
unavailable in the mainstream seed trade.
This means that a lot of time, effort and energy (and love)
is required to hand producing these seeds. It is the only
way to keep them available to our home gardening friends.
The
result is that although we are able to keep them from disappearing
into history, they are more costly than the modern hybrids to
produce and they are not available in bulk quantities.
In Native American lore,
maize (or corn as it is commonly called in the U.S.) was one of the
"three sisters". Along with beans and squash, the three sisters were
planted and grown together, supporting each other in their lifecycle and providing a very
balanced diet of carbohydrates, proteins and vegetable fats to their cultivators.
Native American corn was the genetic foundation of all
other corn varieties. "Indian" corn is rarely grown in the garden today.
Columbus was one of the first Europeans to see maize or corn.
The Pueblo Indians were raising irrigated corn in the American
Southwest when Coronado visited in 1540. The settlers at
Jamestown were taught how to raise it in 1608 and in 1620, it helped
to keep the Pilgrims alive over winter. Corn cobs were found
in Tehucan, Mexico that date back 7000 years.
Links to some recipes are included in the descriptions below.
Big
Daddy’s Yellow 80
days to eating 120 for dry crop — Family heirloom yellow dent corn from Hickman County, Tennessee.
One to two
large ears per stalk. Cobs are white with an occasional
red one. Plant heights average eight feet. Good roasting
corn
and good
for frying
or as some people call it, creaming. As with all field
corn it is best picked in early milk stage for eating fresh. Used
for grinding for meal and for stock feed. Stalks make nice fall
decoration. Ears can be dried and used for feeding the whole ear to
squirrels. [Approximately 95 seeds per ounce]
Rare family heirloom.
Bloody
Butcher
120 days — This dent-type corn has been grown in the
United States since at least 1845. The stalks are ten to twelve feet tall with two to
six ears
of corn per stalk.
The kernels are striped red or dark red on
pink to red cobs. An occasional white ear may appear. Can be used for roasting
or frying
when young but generally used for
flour or corn meal. Good flavored. [Approximately
100 seeds per ounce]
Rare and very limited supply.
Blue Hopi
110 days — Typically used to make
blue colored corn meal and also as a decoration. The plants
are bushy five to eight feet in height with eight to ten inch ears of smooth blue
kernels. [Approximately
95 seeds per ounce]
Broom Corn - Mixed Colors
(Sorghum bicolor) 110 days— Sorghum bicolor, commonly called
"Broom Corn", is not truly corn. The stalks are
similar to corn but they do not produce ears. Seed heads
appear from the tops of the plants instead of a tassel.
Sorghum is the fifth major cereal grain crop in the world (CGIAR
Research).
Birds
love the seed heads, which are also highly decorative and the
quality straw is used for crafts and brooms. Grows four to
five feet
tall. Our mix can include colors of gold, red-bronze, brown, black,
burgundy, white/cream, and natural. [Approximately
1,200 seeds per ounce]
Golden Bantam 78 days — The old standard yellow
sweet corn that has been
the home gardener's favorite since the beginning of the 20th century.
A farmer named William Chambers of Greenfield, Massachusetts had
grown this variety for years. After his death, a friend of
Chambers found some of the sweet corn seeds and sold them to W.
Atlee Burpee.
In 1902, Golden Bantam was featured in a Burpee catalog.
Before 1900 most people thought that yellow corn was fit only for
animal feed. Within a few years, people in the United States began
to favor yellow corn.
The plants grow to about six feet and produce seven inch ears loaded
with sweet, plump, golden kernels. [Approximately 110 seeds per ounce]
Golden
Giant (De Lue’s Golden Giant) 85 days — Once a well known, highly favored, standard sweet corn variety
among home gardeners and market farmers. Like so many other great old varieties,
it was dropped by seed companies and last available in 1998.
The plants reach a height of six to seven feet
and produce eight inch ears with
twelve to sixteen
rows of very plump, sweet, creamy yellow kernels. 'Golden Giant' was
obtained from a cross between 'Golden Bantam'
and 'Howling Mob' made about 1906 by Dr. Frederick S. De Lue of Needham,
Massachusetts. After ten years of selection it was exhibited in 1916 before
the Vegetable Committee of the Massachusetts Horticulture Society who for the
first time in the history of the Society awarded to a variety of sweet corn its
much sought for silver medal. Joseph Breck & Co. introduced the variety
with a full page display in their catalog of 1917.
Rare and very limited supply.
Hickory
King
115 days
—
These plants grow 7½ to
nine feet
tall. The ears range from seven to eight inches long with ten to
twelve rows of
large white kernels. This is a
roasting corn variety that is
also used for grits, meal, and tortilla flour and in the South it is popular for
hominy.
W.
Atlee Burpee described it in the 1888 Farm Annual as
follows: "This new white field corn has proved entirely distinct from all
other varieties, and has unquestionably the largest grains, with the
smallest cob of any white corn ever introduced." According to his 1922
annual, it is best suited for areas south of Pennsylvania.
Japanese
Hulless Popcorn
(Tom Thumb, Australian Hulless, Dwarf Baby Rice) 85 days
—
A very old variety of pop corn that has not lost its appeal to home
gardeners. It is quite dwarf in habit, plants reaching only
about five feet in height. Each plant produces two to three ears per
stalk. The ears are short and thick, about four inches in length
and two inches in diameter. Kernels are arranged irregularly on
cob and are unusually tender, sweet, and pure white when popped.
[About 170 seeds/ounce]
Jarvis
Golden Prolific 86 days to eating, 120 for dry crop — An old commercial variety once very
popular for Southern planting. Developed by North Carolina Farmer, James
Monroe "Plough Boy" Jarvis (1857-1947)3 Dates back to the
1930s and perhaps earlier. The stalks are relatively short compared to
other field corn varieties, reaching 6 to 8 feet in height. Will produce two
good ears per stalk, sometimes more under favorable growing conditions. Ears
are 7 to 10 inches long, with 12 to14 rows of medium sized, bright golden
yellow kernels on a small white cob. Has a good tight shuck that aids against
attacks from earworms. Shows good drought resistance.4 [About 100
seeds/ounce]
Rare and very limited supply.
Mr.
Robert’s White 80 days to eating 120 for dry crop — Family heirloom white dent
corn from
Dickson County, Tennessee. One to two large ears per stalk. White cobs. Plant
heights average eight to ten feet. Good roasting
corn
and good for frying or as some people call it, creaming.
As with all field corn it is best picked in early milk stage for
eating fresh. Used for grinding for meal and for stock feed. Stalks
make nice fall decoration. Ears can be dried and used for feeding
the whole ear to squirrels. [Approximately 90 seeds per ounce]
Rare family heirloom.
Orchard
Baby 65 days — A very unique and interesting variety of sweet corn
for home gardeners. Bred by a Mr. Orchard of Canada, this
variety was introduced by Oscar H. Will & Co. in their 1947 catalog.
They continued to offer the variety until they went out of business
in 1959.
The
plants are short (four to five feet tall) and produce two small,
five to six inch ears that have eight to ten rows of sweet, yellow
kernels. The flavor is delicious
- tender, not starchy, flavorful and just the right amount of sweet
- not too overpoweringly sweet like modern super sweet varieties.
Our source was the USDA's accession
number
PI 219872. [About 190
seeds/ounce]
Rare and very limited supply.
Pencil
Cob
75 to 100 days — This old dent corn variety is a very
flavorful roasting ear corn. It is quite good picked
in its early milk stage (about 75 days) for frying
or creaming.
Since most field corn varieties have low sugar content, try adding
a little sugar when creaming.
It is also useful as bird and livestock feed.
The
plants grow five to six feet tall produce two to three ears per
stalk. As seen in the picture, it gets its name from the
fact that the cobs are not much bigger in diameter than a pencil.
Although most companies simple state that it is a white corn, the color of the kernels are actually a dingy white with a yellowish hue with tips that pick up a reddish tinge from the cob coloring. Stands dry weather well. [About
110
seeds/ounce]
Rainbow ("Indian"
corn)
110 days — This open pollinated variety has great colors for
drying and used ornamentally.
Although it can be used as roasting
or frying ears when young,
it is generally used
for flour and meal, or as mentioned, as decoration. [Approximately
100 seeds per ounce].
Red
Strawberry Popcorn
105 days — Popular for drying, the cobs are strawberry shaped and
rich, deep-red color. The four foot tall plants are highly ornamental and an
excellent choice for an edible landscape planting.
[Approximately
300 seeds per ounce]
Reid
Yellow Dent
115 days
— At one time, the most
popular variety in the corn belt.2
It is a medium maturing variety, has big ears of large
yellow kernels with good shuck coverage. Mainly used for
flour, meal, and feed.
Robert Reid and his son James developed the
variety after moving from Ohio to Tazwell County, Illinois in 1846. He
brought with him a large, late red corn known as 'Gordon Hopkins'. The following
year a poor stand of this variety was obtained and the missing hills were
replanted to an early yellow dent corn grown extensively in Tazwell County. Anatural cross between the varieties resulted, from which James Reid developed the 'Reid Yellow Dent'. Fifty years of careful and systematic selection have firmly established in this variety certain characteristics. No other corn breeds as true to type as does 'Reid Yellow Dent'.1 [Approximately 90 seeds per ounce]
'Sunshine' Sweet
Corn — A 2004 Victory Seed Re-Introduction
75 days — We are excited to announce the re-release of this old classic. We
are always looking for interesting and rare varieties that were developed for a
broad range of growing conditions. This offering is an example to this
commitment.
'Sunshine' was developed at the North Dakota Agricultural
Experimental Station (AES) by A. F. Yeager to thrive in areas with shorter
growing seasons. ‘Sunshine’ is the stabilized cross of ‘Golden Bantam’
[1902, W. Atlee Burpee]
and ‘Gill’s Early Market’ [Gill Bros. Seed Co., Portland, Oregon]. Originally released in 1927, it remained very popular,
under several name variations, until seed companies began favoring the sale of
unstable, F1 hybrids and last sold commercially in 1992.
The stalks grow to about 5½ feet in height with ears setting about one foot
from the ground. It retains the good, old-time corn flavor of its ‘Golden Bantam’
parent but reaches roasting
ear stage three to ten days earlier. The ears are six to eight inches long
averaging twelve
rows of golden yellow kernels. It did great in our Oregon and Tennessee
2003 trial, as well as in our seed production grow outs in 2004 and 2005.
We look forward to hearing how it does in your garden. [About 100
seeds/ounce]
Rare and very limited supply.
Stowell's
Evergreen (White) Sweet Corn
95 days — This has been a home
garden and market favorite white variety since Nathan
Stowell of New Jersey introduced it in 1848. It is a late season
variety, yields eight inch ears that produce anywhere from
fourteen to eighteen
rows of sweet, white, tender kernels. Keeps longer than most
which makes it one of the best heirloom varieties for table,
canning and freezing. [Approximately
100 seeds per ounce]
Rare and very limited supply.
Trucker's
Favorite
80 days
—
An old standard dent variety that
produces nine inch ears having between sixteen and eighteen rows of tender, sweet white
kernels making it a favorite
roasting
or frying
corn. As with all field corn it is best picked in early milk stage for
eating fresh.
The plants are six to seven feet tall.
A high yielding variety.
Most people now associate corn for eating with modern sweet corn
varieties that incorporate specific genes to increase or enhance
sugar quantities and shelf life. Other types of corn can be
eaten like sweet corn when it is young, but are usually grown to
maturity, dried and used for flour and meal.
Corn is probably
the most diverse grain crop. Both man and nature have selected
traits that can roughly be classified by the characteristics of their kernels
-- flint, flour, dent, pop, sweet, and waxy.
Flint corn
is mostly hard with smooth, hard seed coats.
Flour
corn is soft and starchy with thin seed coats.
Dent corn
has hard "flinty" sides with soft starchy cores that allow
the ends to collapse or "dent" when the corn dries.
Varieties of dent corn are the most widely grown types in the Unites
States and used for oils, syrups, grits, meals, flours, and silage.
Popcorn is
one of the oldest forms of corn and can be generally classified into
two types -- pearl or rice -- based on the physical shape of the kernels.
Sweet
corn
is mainly grown for fresh consumption and not used for flour or
feed. A variety named 'Papoon' was raised by the Iroquois in
1779. Golden Bantam, a variety that we still offer, was released
in 1902 and has been popular ever since.
By
the way, the "baby corn" that you use on salads are simply
immature, unfertilized ears that have been harvested and sometimes
pickled.
Planting
Instructions
Soil
must be at least 65ºF to germinate. Be patient or you will
waste a lot of seed! Plant in full sun and keep it
watered. Corn is a wind-pollinated plant. Plant in blocks
several rows wide to ensure full ears.
Sow
seeds about one-half to one inch deep. They can be planted in rows,
three to four
inches apart, in spaced twenty four to thirty inches between rows. Thin to
six to twelve inches apart.
I plant three to four seed in in the shape of a four inch triangle or
square every foot.
Starting seed in cell trays or small
pots in the hothouse provides optimal germination conditions and
therefore higher germination rates. It also allows you to start seeds
earlier than normal while waiting for the ground to warm up and dry
out and become workable. Another added benefit is that the stands are
more evenly spaced and it eliminates the need to follow the old corn
planting rhyme:
"One for the cutworm, one for the
crow, one to rot, and one to grow"
Take care when removing the plants from
the pots and transplanting. The roots are a bit tender and they
will be adversely affected by rough handling.
We began using this method when we
started growing rare varieties and only had small samples to work with. We
needed to ensure the highest germination rates as possible - every
seed had to count.
Mike's Great-uncle Art had been growing corn this way for many, many years
with excellent success. The pictures below show a typical
grow-out (this one happens to be 2004).
Setting out
plants - Row marked and one tray set out. All supplies handy.
Tools, garden notebook, etc.
Closer view of
the plants in cell trays and an empty tray. Note plants in the
ground.
Under good storage conditions, corn
seed should remain viable for
2 years or more. We have personally heard of instances
where some heirloom varieties have remained viable for decades.
75 days — We are excited to announce the re-release of this old classic. We
are always looking for interesting and rare varieties that were developed for a
broad range of growing conditions. This offering is an example to this
commitment.
Security
