My Corn

I have a single stalk of corn growing on the deck of my condominium. It is in a large pot. I didn’t intend to grow corn, but Dave had to start his corn in pots, because the ground squirrels dug up the corn kernels before they could germinate when he put them directly in the garden. He had extra plants, so I planted some of them in Neng’s garden but the squirrels tore them apart.

Dave still had extras, so I put a couple more in Neng’s garden –which were destroyed by squirrels in short order. I kept one to grow on my deck. My corn stalk is on the very edge of my north facing deck, so it gets “sideways” sun for a short time in the morning and evening. I don’t know how well it will do, and I even found a squirrel on my deck this morning!

Just as a farm dog is different from a family pet, my corn is not so much a crop, as it has taken on the role of a plant-pet. Its close proximity to my living space allows for a more intimate knowledge of the corn’s personality than one gets from a field of corn.

One interesting characteristic of corn is that the middle plants always seem to grow stronger and larger than those on the ends of the rows. This was even the case, when I have grown a short row of sweet corn in my gardens that I’ve had in the past.

How will my single stalk of corn handle its isolation from others of its kind? Will it exist happily in its singular situation? Perhaps it is better than being ripped apart by obnoxious squirrels –though that still seems like a possibility.