One of the landrace projects i am starting this year is for a northern flint corn. I will be growing in northern Vermont, hopefully in unmodified soil. The soil is very rich looking, and is currently a meadow. I plan on digging the meadow growth off of circular patches all along the hill, and coplanting potentially with beans and squash. I have searched and accumulated many different genetically diverse flour corns, including the going to seed flour corn, of all colors. I was not picky about much beyond flour corn, and either genetic diversity or shorter season. I have not grown corn before.
Late in the planning stage and after i had accumulated dozens of varieties and a pint jar packed with a rainbow of seeds, EFN made air root varieties available. I am really excited about this and bought a packet of each air root variety they were offering. I am hoping this will dovetail nicely into my hope of not having to modify the soil even after growing many seasons of corn.
So the questions i have for this community is as follows:
what planting strategies would you suggest for air root seeds vs no known air root seeds? Should i mostly plant air root seeds, supplemented with some of my mix? Should i mix all together and let a few generations go by and then let the selection occur later as long as all successful genetics are somewhere in the population?
what are peoples strategies for dealing with bigger pests such as rabbits, raccoons, and bears? My parents say that corn will instantly get raided, but i have more hope after hearing joseph lofthouses experience with stalk strength, but am not sure if there will be any strategy for bears. I am also wondering if the fact that im growing flour corn will be less immediately desirable to the big pests?
I haven’t grown lots of corn varieties but the ones I have grown, all non-hybrid, have often produced air roots. I would plant a good mix of both and keep an eye out for air roots later in the process. I can’t comment on bears etc as the only animal predation we have here is either by rats or birds.
@RayS thats very helpful, i will do that! I was worried about growing out lots of corn without air roots and diluting the trait but if a lot will have some amount of air roots then i can maximize diversity so i am happy about that! Thanks for the advice!
It seems that these aerial roots in corn can perform a very useful function. In certain circumstances these roots are covered on a gel, exuded by the roots themselves, that can host free living nitrogen fixing bacteria. The bacteria exchange this fixed nitrogen with the host corn plant in return for sugars to eat. I’ve noticed this gel a few times on corn I grow. Since finding out what this gel can do I want to encourage it in my corn population. I propose to do this by preferentially sowing kernels from plants where I observe this gel. Not too heavily though. I just want to give the population a gentle nudge in this direction.
So you often have air roots without the gel and sometimes have roots with the gel? Does it occur only during certain weather patterns or do the plants that have the gell pretty much have them the whole growing season?
I don’t know if corn could become resistant to bears!!!
At my place, the corn that became resistant to skunks and raccoons tended towards air-rootedness. I figure that the extra fertility from the nitrogen fixing microbes helped them to grow taller and stronger. Also, the prop-roots might have caused difficulty pushing the stalks to the ground. Animals prefer to push the corn to the ground and eat it there, instead of climbing the stalks.
At my place the gel exists during periods of high humidity. Right after irrigation. Early morning. The air roots also exists as nubs hidden under leaves. I suspect that those harbor microbes as well, and they do not dry out.
Sweet corn attracts more predators than flour corn, which attracts more predators than flint corn.
I remember having some form of air roots always, although I can’t be certain if I had in the early years. Haven’t paid that much attention to them, but now when thinking of going as low in-put as possible I had to check. I suppose some form of air roots are common, but only one of six plants of painted mountain had lots with gel. Other varieties did not have it. Sweet painted hills sweetcorn also also had some roots with gel, but not as much roots or gel, and roots where lower to the ground. Suppose it doesn’t matter if they go to the ground either? I remember having some bigger air roots in sweetcorn too. Maybe they are just little behind or I didn’t see them as as I can’t get everywhere because of pumpkin. Next year I will have bigger grow out and will look out for it.
Sample size is quite small. Only thing I seemed to notice that it seems to be more on those with green leaves and stalk that those with purple in them. Those greens seem to be bigger in general so it’s not size thing so far. Have to check more carefully at the end of season once I have clear access to all plants and they are fully mature. There shouldn’t lack of nitrogen this year so it might show under different conditions. Not sure if I would go completely without added nitrogen as there is free horsemanure available, but I think that would be good back up so that I don’t have think as much if I have enough.
I know it’s been a while, but wanted to reply with my experience. With the really dry weather that we are having again, the air roots on my corn look dry, almost dried up. Also, this is flint corn, if that matters.
But a few weeks ago, specially after the last rainstorms there was definitely gel type stuff on them. So in my garden this year, i’d be making the case for gel in wet or humid weather only. But obviously present in some drier form ready to spring into action once wet.
