Anyone?

Suckers? It's growing more stems or "trunks"? I think most folks take those off to focus the plant's energy on the main stem and (usually) 2 ears. Most corn is planted too close together to let multi-stemmed corn grow very well.

I know one grower, though, who grows his corn farther apart and leaves the new stems. He says it's not unusual to get 12 ears on some of his plants. (This also probably varies by variety. I wouldn't expect more than 2-4 from commercial varieties.) Here's my favorite example.

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That came up volunteer in one of his gardens. He says it had 16 ears. Called it a cornbush.

You'll have to decide how YOU want to plant your corn, and how you want it to grow. Consider how many plants you have, the space you want them to take up, and whether or not you'll have to hand pollinate. (A small grouping of corn won't self pollinat very well.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Image source

If bugs are eating you leaves, you'll probably need to use some sort of repellant or insecticide. There are of course many options. I'm only familiar with a few, but since you've gotten no other answers, I'll share them.

Sevin is effective, and easy to find. Works on most bugs. Be aware, it washes off in the rain. If the bugs come back, re-apply.

An organic alternative is to spray with water that has had tobacco soaked in it. Won't hurt most plants, but google it. I think it's bad for tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplant. (The nightshades.) Any form of tobacco will probably work. I used non-filtered cigarette butts. Made the plants smell like an ashtray for a while. I'd use it outside or ventilate.

This post was edited by oldmobie on Mon, Jun 30, 14 at 11:53