The sweetest corn

By Lauren Bonar Swezey, Sunset special projects editor

Homegrown vegetables always taste great, but there are a few crops that taste MUCH better than store bought produce. Tomatoes definitely qualify. Sweet and succulent ‘Ambrosia’ cantaloupes do too. We’ve been harvesting corn for a couple of weeks now. Even farm stand corn doesn’t taste THIS good! We chose a Triple Sweet variety called ‘Honey Select,’ which produces 8 1/2-inch-long ears filled with plump yellow kernels in about 79 days.

This is one of the new extra sweet types that incorporates all of the best characteristics (sweetness, good corn flavor, creamy kernels) from the different types of super sweet corns. In fact it’s so good that it was designated an All-America Selections winner in 2001. Judges noted that the corn is easy to grow with superior eating quality. Another bonus is that this variety doesn’t have to be isolated from other corns, which is great for home gardeners with limited space. Two things to remember when planting corn next spring: wait to sow seeds until the soil temperature is 55 degrees  2 inches below the soil surface (corn seed doesn’t germinate well in cool soil) and plant in blocks (minimum 4 feet by 4 feet) so the developing ears are well pollinated.