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lilyd74

Had to harvest field corn early

Because of a really ambitious squirrel, I pulled in every ear of my tiny field corn patch really, really early. The ears are full (most of them) and kernels are developed, but certainly not dented yet. This corn was an experiment for me this year, many of you know I am a backyard gardener. The variety is Japonica, it's an ornamental and I originally got it to grow in the front yard because it's pretty while it's growing. DH had fits at the thought of corn in the front yard so it wound up squeezed in a corner of the back yard.

Now that I've had to harvest it, what can I do to help it dry down so that I can try to save the harvest? Shuck it, leave it in the husks, spread it out, what temp, etc. That darn squirrel got six ears in the space of two days - some of them all the way through, down more than half way - and I knew I would not win that battle. The ground looked like it had been sprinkled with wood shavings from the eaten pieces of cob. So inside with the corn it was. I would have sworn it was a raccoon based on the severity of the damage if I hadn't caught the culprit in the act. Makes me think dark thoughts. I'm hoping to save at least some of the grain to experiment with later in the fall, but I have to get it dry enough first. Thanks!