HICKORY KING CORN (Zea mays), dates to before 1875 and is a classic Southern roasting, grits & hominy corn, corn nuts --and a choice for moonshiners (corn mash)! Good disease tolerance. Stalks reach 12'-16', each usually producing two-three 9" ears with 10-12 rows. Makes excellent supports for pole beans so you can grow the Three Sisters (corn, beans and squash) together in the same part of your garden. Hickory King has a great fan club -- and for good reason. The very large broad kernals are pearly white, ready to burst with great flavor! Tolerates hot weather well. 85-110 days. 25 seeds.
GROWING TIPS: Corn needs hot weather, plenty of time to ripen, and plenty of room to grow. Corn is a heavy feeder that is particularly responsive to organic compost and sweet soil (pH 6.0 to 6.8) and requires regular watering for good ear production and taste. Do not plant corn until soil temperature is 60 degrees. Provide a sunny location. Plant seeds 1" deep and 4" - 6" apart. I usually plant a little closer together and thin out the weakest so that I have them 12" apart, hilling up the strongest. You can grow in rows or you can grow in short blocks, rather than long rows, and still achieve pollination, or you can pollinate by hand. Please note that you must separate (by at least 100 feet) or stagger plantings (to make sure their maturity days are at least 7 days apart) different varieties and types of corn since they will cross pollinate. Corn needs regular watering - an inch a week, but never water the upper stalks after they tassle - it washes away the pollen! And regular feeding - especially nitrogen and phosphorous. In my area we are prone to sudden violent thunderstorms which can flatten my corn bed. So I have taken to providing a stake fence and securing the growing stalks with string as they grow. It makes quite a difference! Nothing more aggravating than watching your beautiful corn bed ready to produce to completely on its side! It also seems to frustrate the critters who nightly raid my garden! Harvest when the silks are dry and brown, usually 3 weeks after they appear. By the way, did you know your coffee grinder makes an excellent corn mill? Just be sure to clean out (or have a separate one) before using for either purpose.
CHERRYGAL HEIRLOOM GARDEN SEEDS & PLANTS offer hundreds of heirloom and vintage open-pollinated varieties! Most have histories dating back centuries and are tried and true producers. Some are rare, or threatened with extinction. When you grow a plant from heirloom seed and save that seed, you are participating in a practice that goes back for generations. Our grandparents and their grandparents grew these varieties. Often the seeds were prized possessions carried to the New World when they emigrated.
Ever notice how most seed catalogs require you to buy (and pay for) much more seed than you could ever possibly use in a season? If you have a budget for garden seeds, this limits your choices! Although seeds can be viable for longer than one growing season, it requires that they be stored at a consistent temperature and humidity. Few of us do this. CherryGal sizes its seed packets for the home gardener, because we know you may want to grow 5 different lettuces, or three different corns, and don’t want to have to take out a second mortgage to do so! CHERRYGAL SEEDS ARE A TREMENDOUS BARGAIN!
All seeds offered are FRESH stock, with high germination rates. Varieties are specially selected for home gardeners. If you want the flavor you remember from grandma's kitchen garden or the beauty of her cottage flowers, choose CHERRYGAL HEIRLOOM SEEDS.
ABOUT OPEN-POLLINATED SEEDS . . . All CherryGal Heirloom Seeds are heirlooms (dating at least 100 years) or vintage (mid-20th Century or older) OPEN-POLLINATED varieties. This means saved seed will be true to the parent. Don't be dazzled by the never-ending array of hybrid seeds promoted by gardening suppliers. First, seeds from that produce will not grow true to the parent -- you have to keep buying hybrid seed. Second, most hybrids are developed for market – not home -- growers with an emphasis on extended shelf life, storage and shipping qualities -- NOT flavor, texture and all those other elements that home growers seek.
All CHERRYGAL HEIRLOOM SEEDS come from reputable growers (most of them small farms) and wherever possible ORGANIC suppliers (so noted). By buying CHERRYGAL SEEDS you are supporting the growing worldwide movement of SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE and with a little practice you will be able to save even more money in the future by growing open-pollinated varieties and saving seed for next year. All my seeds are DOUBLE GERMINATION TESTED: First by my growers and then by me. Please Note: CherryGal Heirloom Seeds are guaranteed to be fresh stock, but are not guaranteed as to results (sorry - we wish we could, but there are too many variables in gardening) so please do not ask to return. However, we think you will be pleased and would like to hear about your gardening success!
SHIPPING: I endeavor to ship my seeds as quickly as possible - usually within 24 - 48 hours. If there is a need for more time, you will be advised at time of purchase and shipped as soon as possible. In the event an item becomes unavailable or temporarily out of stock I will offer you a chance to substitute another selection or refund you immediately. I package my seeds for shipping in a manner appropriate to the amount and type of seed - larger orders and larger seeds require more packaging. I also combine multiple orders of the same seed variety, where practical, in one envelope unless you request otherwise. This is an ecological measure, not a cost-saving one. Whether you choose first class mail or priority shipping, your seeds will ship using a delivery confirmation number which will be supplied to you.
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