Can anyone reccomend a source of non-hybrid corn seed? It doesn't need to be sweet corn. Field or 'dent' corn is fine.

Thanks.

-Blast

Lots of seed sellers have open-pollinated corn. Just google 'OP corn'.

Then watch for the initials:
OP = open pollinated
F1, F2 or Hyb = hybrid
SU = normal sugary
SE = Extra-sweet
I think OG stands for organically grown, but I'm not sure.

Most seed companies come right out and tell you which seed varieites are which, but a few don't, and I tend not to deal with them.

The most common variety of OP sweet corn is Golden Bantam, or Improved Golden Bantam.

But you've made me curious... why don't you care if it's sweet corn or field (dent) corn? If the use doesn't matter, why do you want OP seed? Usually, people want OP seed because they want to save that same kind of corn. To keep it 'pure', you have to keep it separate from other varieties of corn (by at least half a mile), as corn is wind-pollinated.

I CAN'T STAND IT... I HAVE TO KNOW!

Sue

www.nativeseedsearch.com in Tucson has many southwest corns.

Sue,

My grandpa grew dent (field) corn on his dairy farm in Minnesota. Every so often some foolish townie would steal a few ears thinking they could boil it up like sweet corn. Grampa would laugh at them but he taught me how to boil the dent corn in a lye solution to make it edible by humans. Moving down to Texas I learned this was basically hominy grits.

A lot of my gardening attemps have been fairly unproductive. I want to try and see if I have better luck with Three Sisters Planting. I'm thinking field corn would be better for long-term storage and I'm assuming most field corn is now some sterile hybrid. I'm also assuming (bad Blast!) that most original corns grown here were of the hard-kernal type. I need to look at Chris' link to learn more.

-Blast

Climate has a lot to do with a good corn crop. If you know of any local seed-production companies, try them first. Even if they don't carry what you want, they may know of someone who does.

You might want to start with Wilhite Seed Co. in Poolville, TX
http://www.willhiteseed.com/products.php?cat=30

They have two old OP varieties, Hickory King and Reid's Yellow Dent, which were specifically grown for hominy.

And keep in mind that corn is a heavy feeder, so you'll need good soil for a good crop.

Sue

Absolutely. And if you want to keep your soil in good condition, rotate your corn with clover or legumes every couple of years, and till in the mature plants when you do. This practice adds nitrogen and organic material. Techniques like these allow the Amish in our area to get excellent crops without chemical fertilizers, which do nothing good for the soil's long-term health.

Try www.seedsofchange.com. Been dealing with them for years without a problem. They have a great variety of everything.

You could try http://www.territorial-seed.com/stores/1/index.cfm too. I've bought seeds from them in the past and they ahve a lot of open pollentated varieties.

Thanks for all the great information!

-Blast