Sweetcorn - Can I grow in pots?

alexryzawlskiqBU-X4OF

Hello. I've never grown sweetcorn before as I've never seen it worthwhile to grow or suitable for my garden, however I've been given some seeds and I thought I'd give them a go. At the moment I have 2 very large deep pots (about 1.5m deep). Is it possible to grow them in there.

Buttercupdays

You could grow them but you might not get any cobs. They are wind pollinated and it is recommended to plant them in a block of 20 or so to increase the chance of pollination.

Nanny Beach

I grow sweetcorn most years. They take up a lot of room, certainly you have to grow in blocks for wind pollination, but I don't grow 20. They need planting at least 12 inches apart,so I don't think pots are viable proposition.

Fairygirl

Surely if the containers are that depth -1.5m - they're a decent width as well?

Lyn

With a pot 5 ft tall, I would need a ladder to plant it up and reach the top of the plants.
If it’s the same width you could plant a block in there.  It will take a lot of soil though, is it really worth it. 

Fairygirl

That's what I wondered @Lyn - and especially the amount of soil.
It would need to be buried to make it easier to access and for caring for the plants as they grow [they're not exactly small ] so it would surely be a bit pointless. 
Have you nothing else that would be more useful for the container @alexryzawlskiqBU-X4OF?

JennyJ

I did wonder if @alexryzawlskiqBU-X4OF meant to write 1.5 feet (18 inches/45cm). In any case the width matters more - how many plants can be planted in a block, or can several pots be grouped together to make a block?

Fairygirl

Good point @JennyJ. That sounds far more likely!
In that case, I wouldn't think it would work unless there was enough pots to make a big enough area. If it's only the two mentioned, I doubt it.

JennyJ

If the containers were wide down to the base (something like the size of a standard water butt cut in half across the middle or wider, not the tall narrow ones or the bell-shaped ones that get narrow at the base) you could possibly try putting something like 4 plants in each one. They take a lot of soil/compost to fill though, and are pretty much impossible to move once full (I grew potatoes in 3 of them last year).

alexryzawlskiqBU-X4OF

Sorry all the containers are about 60cm tall. The planting area is 30x30cm. Sorry for the poor measurements! It was early and I was tired 😂😴. They are still big pots. They ate up at least a full bag of compost.

alexryzawlskiqBU-X4OF

I think I'd need a crane to lift a 1.5m pot 😆🙃