On Sat, 17 May 2003 15:42:16 +0100, "Drakanthus"
wrote:

I've just bought a tray of 6 spinach plants and a tray of 6 Early Gold
sweet
corn.

And what about sweet corn? I don't imagine sweet corn can be grown in
grow
bags or large pots --- or can they? And can corn be grown outside in the
Manchester area or are they greenhouse plants?

I think it depends on the variety. I have grown 'Sundance'
successfully several times in Manchester but it is said to be
particularly suitable for northern areas (I even got decent crops from
the ones I sowed direct in the soil to fill gaps). This year I am
trying 'Incredible' - no real reason for the change, it's just what
they had in the shop. I think I have read since buying the seeds that
'Incredible' requires a long growing season, so here's to a long and
sunny autumn!

Any hints or tips from anyone who has grown spinach or corn would be
greatly

I have never had much success with spinach but I am trying again this
year.

Sweetcorn I also grow outside in the veg plot, but this year I'm short of
space so am trying containers also. The containers are quite large (60+
litres each) with three plants per container. The containers are against a
South facing wall so should get enough sun and be warm. Sweetcorn grows
fairly tall - about 8 feet high in my garden in the Midlands, and needs
plenty of watering - so bear this in mind with your choice of container -
avoid one that would restrict root growth, blow over in the wind or simply
dry up on a sunny day.

The height of sweetcorn depends on the variety. Sundance is only
about 5ft high and I've seen other types on our allotment site that
are even shorter so don't panic if yours don't look like reaching 8ft!
I think that maize (varieties of corn grown for animal feed or
processing) tends to grow taller and is grown as far north as
Manchester (there is a farm at Dunham, near Manchester, that grew a
maize maze last year and is doing the same again this year).

Also, protect the cobs as they ripen by netting the whole block of
plants or by putting plastic bottles with one end cut off over each
cob, or the birds will beat you to the ripe ones! You can grow other
crops between the sweetcorn plants to make the most of the space that
you have. I have successfully grown french beans this way but haven't
tried any of the other crops that I've seen recommended, such as
pumpkins, spinach, lettuce, etc.
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk