Corn - Pot size for 3 plants clusters

Hi,
This year I am growing sweet corn in pots. Some James Wong variety.
The seeds package reads the following:

Height:151-200cm
Spread:21-30cm
Spacing:21-30cm

My seedlings have developed nicely and in a while it will be time to plant them in large pots, after hardening.

Could anybody suggest what a good pot size would be for clusters of 3 to 4 plants?
Also, how tall should a plant be before transplanting it?
We have a slugs and squirrels problem, so I generally tend and wait until plants have grown a bit before movign them outdoor.

I found this video on youtube, which suggests 5 gallons pots (22 litres), but that seems a bit small for more than one plant?



Thanks for any advice

 

I grew some in a self contained planter last year.





The internal volume of the soil/compost mix used for the six sweetcorn and two cucumbers was 87x42x28 (LxWxH cm) = 102L.

The resulting cobs (two-three per plant) were a bit smaller and paler in colour than ones grown directly in the ground, however, there were no noticeable differences in taste or texture.

I agree, a 22L pot is too small for more than one plant - generally, the bigger the pot, the better.

You need the weight of both the pot and the compost to prevent the whole thing from toppling over in strong winds. Also, a big pot won't dry out as fast as a smaller one.

Last year was a scorcher, so I had to water almost every day once the corn stamens appeared.

I germinated the sweetcorn in small, white plastic coffee cups and transplanted them when the weather was warm enough. The plants were at least the height of a cup above the compost surface when this was done.

 

Thanks so much for all the advice!

I love the look of your urban garden
If I may ask, what is the purpose of the metal grill I can spot over the planter just behind the corns?

Most of my seedlings are well over a cup height now, so I will start planting them I think, while planting some more seedlings.
I delayed doing so because I am slightly worried about slugs, which in the past have devastated any small seedling I tried planting, and squirrels. Even if I guess squirrels will only become a real problem when the corn cobs start forming.

I guess I will try with 40 liters pots standing in soil, for 2 to three plants. Hopefully, they will be able to root into the soil. The wind might be a though, I will need to find a solution.

Did you use high nitrogen fertilizer at the beginning of the season?

Thanks again,
Aldo

 

Sunken 40L pots sound good to me.

I used half a trowel of fish, blood and bone fertiliser to sweeten the spent compost/soil mix prior to transplanting. Then followed the same feeding regime as for the pepmato plants in the adjacent larger planter: liquid stench of alkanet once a week at the concentration of about a tea cup to 8L of water. After about two months, I added another half trowel of fertiliser to boost cucumber and cob production.

So, yes, I did use high-ish nitrogen fertiliser at the beginning of the season.

The purpose of the grill was to prevent foxes, squirrels and the resident ginger tom from jumping into the planter and digging over the contents. The metal shoe rack tower also served a similar purpose as well as being a climbing frame support for the cucumbers.

I used six slug pellet granules placed at the edges of the compost to deal with any potential slug and snail problems. The pellets are bait so I placed them, primarily, to draw them away from the very tender young cucumber plants.

 

Thanks and sorry for replying so late.
Work sidetracked me, but I did manage to move 10 plants to larger pots and they are now in my gazebo, getting used to the great outdoors.

The grill is a good idea. I seem to have a serious problem with cats, squirrels and perhaps rats. Anything planted in soft soil is at risk of digging out, apparently. Just today I found a strawberry plant was pulled out of the soil and left drying, despite some netting I had placed over it.

I had never heard of "liquid stench of Alkanet" before, it sounds like something out of some witch' cauldron Last year I used molasses with everything, with apparently good success, and also water I used to soak woodchips in, but I might give weeds' brew a go

I never used slug pellets because I understand they can be quite toxic to pets and wildlife (I am annoyed at digging cats and squirrels, but not that annoyed..). Also, growing almost exclusively vegetables I am slightly worried that pellets could contaminate produce, but then I guess that placing the bait away from the plants should be safe enough.

I bought a bunch of cheap fine netted material from China, the kind used for tunnels, and this weekend I will make some sheltered areas for strawberries and other small plants, and for my king stropharia beds. I hope that keeps slugs and other pests away. Otherwise I guess I will have to try with pellets or perhasp nematodes.

Thanks again for all the advice!

 

Calling a stinking liquid made from raw decomposed weeds a "tea" would be besmirching the good name of my beloved PG Tips.

Therefore, if you are going to all the trouble of producing your own liquid feed then you might as well take that small extra step and give it a descriptive name that doesn't include the word "tea".

For example:

Comfrey ---> Misérable odeur de consoude
Nettles ---> Pong of nettle
Weeds ---> Wee of weeds
Earthworm ---> Juice of worm (ie juice collected at the base of a wormery)