Sweet Corn

Tar spot of corn has been confirmed in Maryland for the 2023 growing season. The first report came from a field in Cecil county, followed by several additional reports in Harford and Carroll county.

All eyes have been on news headlines coming from the Black Sea for the last two to three weeks since the termination of the previous agreement between Russia and Ukraine. The escalation in the war between these two nations has seen drone strikes, missile engagements, and major destruction of Black Sea ports like Odessa in Ukraine. Traders have watched these headlines and acted accordingly in the market place as the price of corn and wheat retraced previous months losses.

When selecting sweet corn seed varieties this year, you may want to consider selecting some of the genetically modified Bt hybrids that have built-in resistance to different insect pests. Bt sweet corn varieties have been genetically engineered with genes from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (aka “Bt”), which produce proteins that are toxic to different insect pests.