Chapter 17. Sweet Corn Production
Ramdas Kanissery, Eugene J. McAvoy, Richard N. Raid, and Julien Beuzelin
Botany and Planting
Sweet corn - Zea mays var. rugosa, Poaceae (Gramineae).
Table 17.1. Planting information for sweet corn.
Planting dates
North Florida Feb - Apr
Central Florida Jan - Apr
South Florida Oct - Mar
Planting information
Distance between rows (in) 28 - 36
Distance between plants (in) 6 - 81
Seeding depth (in) 1.0 - 1.5
Seed per acre (lb) 6 - 15
Days to maturity from seed 64 - 90
Plant population (acre) 24,000 - 32,000
Cultivars
Table 17.2. Description of major sweet corn cultivars currently available.
Type Genes controlling sweetness Storage life (days) Relative sugar content
Sugary Full complement of sugary 1 to 3 Normal
Full complement of sugary (su) and
half or full complement of sugary enhancer (se)
3 to 5 Slight to moderate or even high levels
Supersweet, also “Ultra”, “Extra” sweet No sugary (su); full complement of shrunken-2 (sh2) 5 to 10 High
Synergistic, also “Sweet-Gene Hybrid” Full complement of sugary (su); and
half complement of shrunken-2 (sh2)
3 to 5 Moderate
Improved Supersweet Half complement of sugary (su); and
full complement of shrunken-2 (sh2)
5 to 10 Very high
ADX No sugary (su) or shrunken-2 (sh2) genes;
full complement of ae, du, and wx genes.
5 to 10 Moderate to high
Table 17.3. Supersweet (shrunken-2) sweet corn cultivars arranged by kernel color.
Yellow White Bicolor
Accentuate Passion 3380 XT Munition Battalion Obsession
Brezza Primetime Crookham 433 Glacial Beyond BC Prestige
Beyond Multisweet GSS 1170 Devotion Big Time Seminole Sweet
Crookham 382 Hercules BSS 1075 Summer Sweet 2182
1336 SV 1446 7143 Summer Sweet 8102 R Plus
Crookham 423 Honor XR
2182