I'd say stick with one variety to avoid all the cross pollination problems - CP shows up immediately in corn - and stagger your plantings by 2 weeks.

I'd also suggest just 2 plantings and increasing your spacing. Shoot for 50-60 plants total in that small amount of space rather than 100. ;)

Dave

Another option is to plant your whole bed at one time with an open pollinated (OP) variety of corn. Their maturity isn't as uniform as hybrids, which would work in your favor. As long as you start your pot boiling before you pick the corn, OP varieties can be just as tasty.

A relatively 'new' OP variety is Double Standard, which is actually a mix of white and yellow seeds, two varieties that cross-pollinate well to produce a bi-color. (Johnny's Select Seeds carries it; they list it as an exclusive, but I've seen it in other catalogs too.)

As far as pollination goes, just shake the plants a little and let the pollen dust fly. Do this 2 or 3 days running. You can bend the tops over a bit and consider the wind to get the dust on the new silks.

Karl,
I'm planting 4 80' rows (4' apart) of corn this year. I'm planning on planting 20' per week. I'm actually surprised that you're planting so close. I figure I will put in about 640 plants in my space. Have you tried corn that close before?
Rick

You will require VERY fertile soil in a 6 X 6 bed to produce corn at all. A lot depends on how big the variety gets. Bigger corn will need more room. You could have 36 plants in that area with a larger variety vs about 72 plants of a small like Early Alaska. Lots of water will also be needed so keep a hose handy.

DarJones

You can plant corn very close. 4 inches between plants and 12 inch wide rows. High fertility and water is all you need. Planting corn in 4 ft rows is way too wide.

There are varieties that have a long harvest window, like 3 weeks. Some of the older varieties have harvest window on only 2 or 3 days. Having your pot of water boiling before you pick is true of these older varieties.

Some of the newer varieties will keep fresh for 3 weeks in the refridgeator.

Along the same line of how many and in what amount of space, I would like to know how deep does corn grow? In the Northwest Puget Sound area we are in receipt of glacial rock as well as "pan" or clay left by the residuals of long ago rivers. (We blame the Canadians for the rock and are looking for funding to mail all of them back via UPS!) I am building a bed, not raised, on top of the existing ground. All slings and arrows welcome!!