That pale red soil looks nitrogen poor and alkaline. Needs compost or fertilizer worked in early. Corn is a heavy feeder. Mulch helps, too. Once pollen is up it’s probably too late to amend. Every time you grow something is an opportunity to do it better next time, though. Don’t be disheartened.
Thank you for the advice! Would a standard 10-10-10 granule fertilizer work or should I just do nitrogen? I am a total noob at corn so don’t be afraid to over explain.
You can use a balanced fertilizer (same number across NPK values, like 10-10-10) if that’s what you have. If you were buying something, I’d go with like a 6-3-3, or similar. Ideally, an organic fortified with ammonium sulphate (if my guess about your soil being alkaline is correct). There’s quite a few kiln dried manure products made this way. Might ask at a local turf supply shop. They’re gaining popularity and shops like that have large bags at good prices. Organic inputs tend to have micronutrients and supply what the soil bacteria need to improve the soil over time. They’re like concentrated compost, in a sense. Problem with compost is you need a lot of it, by comparison, but it’s better for soil health most of the time.
Spacing is pretty important, too. You want corn spaced about a foot apart.
I tried to attach a photo of some corn I grew last year… will see if that works.
2023 - 6 foot+ corn stalks a few weeks before harvest
This is how it’s looked every single time I’ve tried to grow any corn. The only consistent answer I’ve gotten is that I’m not watering enough, but I have some doubts about that.
Recapitulating ancient teosinte in my back yard
