Corn

Q. We had corn last year that hardly was very tall and the stalks were yellow then green. Could it be my ground has problems or didn't water enough or too much?

A. This is a hard call but I will tell you that I received complaints from all over the eastern half of the USA last summer and fall concerning their vegetables and the poor growth and low harvest. It was frankly a poor season for gardening due to odd weather conditions all over the place. I am unsure about other countries whose gardeners read these global responses so this does not pertain to you folks.

Water/rain was a big problem. Many people did not compensate for Mother Nature and paid the cost. This could be your experience too but I really cannot fault you since the temperatures also were unusual going from way too cool to really hot and back! This threw off the natural cycles of many fruit and vegetables and they could not decide whether to bear or not.

Fertilizer could have been a problem unless you did all that you normally do. That takes it out of being a factor. What was needed last summer was for gardeners to watch their crops and decide what was needed when. That is difficult at times. Let us hope for a more 'normal' season in 2002.