Growing Popcorn - How to Grow Popcorn in Your Garden

Popcorn is a great treat year round. One of the advantages of growing popcorn in your garden is that you can sample some of the many different types of popcorn. Experience the a wide range of choices, from hull-less varieties to the traditional yellow popcorn, all unfettered by the synthetic tastes of microwave popping.

It’s not too bad for you either. Popcorn has about 2/3 as much protein as the same amount of beef, not to mention more iron and about the same amount of calcium. Of course the hull provides roughage, similar to bran flakes.

There are three major types of commercial popcorn: white, large yellow, and small yellow. White popcorn usually is rice shaped, while the yellows have more of a pearl shape to them. For the home grower there are a larger variety of specialty popcorns, such as blue, black, red, and brown. They pop up in two major shapes, either mushroom shaped, which is preferred for used in kettle corn and the like, while the butterfly shaped is preferred for eating.

The growing requirements for popcorn are similar to dent corn (or field corn). Popcorn can mature in about 110 days or less, some as soon as 90 days.

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Soil requirements for popcorn, an ideal is a pH of about 6.0. Popcorn is a fairly heavy feeder, not quite as bad as field corn, but needs some NPK additive. For the home gardener this means fertilizing in a manner similar to your sweet corn. Pay particular attention to making sure you have adequate nitrogen levels. Also, be aware that popcorn has a fairly shallow root system, so it can be forgiving of poorer soils, but will need adequate water as well. When planting put the seeds at one to two inches deep.

Germination is slower for popcorn, so make sure the soil has warmed adequately before planting. Late spring is the best, but make sure the growing season left is long enough.

Just as with sweet corn, you will want to plant in blocks, or rows of 4 or more to ensure the proper pollination of the corn. Don’t plant popcorn and sweet corn near one another, as they will both suffer if their is cross pollination.

It’s time to harvest when your popcorn kernels are hard, and the husks should be completely dry. After the ears are taken from the stalks, remove the husks. Drying can be done by putting the ears in bags. This allows air circulation to help them dry. About once a week, shell a handful of kernels and try popping them. When your test kernels pop well, it’s time to shell the rest of your popcorn, and storing it so moisture can’t get in the containers.

Because stored popcorn can become infested with insects, a great way to store it is in a refrigerator unit.

If your stored popcorn becomes too dry, which will lead to poor popping, you can try adding moisture by adding mixing a tablespoon of water in a quart of seeds. check how well it pops after a few days, and repeat until it gets back to the proper popping level.

After that, you may want to know more about what makes popcorn pop, or you may decide its just time to rent a movie and enjoy the show.