Corn Popcorn Strawberry

Botanical Name: Zea mays

Days to Maturity: 100–105 days

Family: Poaceae

Native: Americas

Hardiness: Frost-sensitive annual

Plant Dimensions: 4' tall, 2 ½' wide

Variety Information: 2"-3" long strawberry-shaped ears with dark ruby-red kernels. 'Strawberry' is a flint type corn that pops into a butterfly/snowflake shape.

Type: Flint

Attributes: Attracts Pollinators, Cut Flower, Deer Resistant, Drought Tolerant, Heat Tolerant

When to Sow Outside: RECOMMENDED. 1 to 2 weeks after your average last frost date, and when soil temperature is at least 60°F, ideally 65°–90°F

When to Start Inside: Not recommended; roots sensitive to transplanting. Best results occur when seedlings are transplanted less than 2 weeks old.

Days to Emerge: 5–10 days

Seed Depth: 1"–1 ½"

Seed Spacing: A group of 2 seeds every 12"

Row Spacing: 24"–36"

Thinning: When 4" tall, thin to 1 every 12"

Harvesting: Let the ears dry on the stalks. The kernels are ready for harvest when they are hard and you can no longer leave a mark on them with your fingernail. Before the first fall frost, give each ear a twist until it breaks off. Peel back the husks, then hang the ears in a cool, dark, dry place for 4 to 6 weeks to cure. This is important to prevent mold and to dry to the optimal moisture percentage for popping. (In a perfect popcorn world, that would be 13½–14%.) After that, the cobs are ready for popping or storing. To strip off cured kernels, twist the cobs back and forth to loosen them (gloves are recommended).

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