Glass Gem Corn Seeds | Zea mays | Certified Organic
Luminous, glass-like kernels in full spectrum colour.
The surprising, infinite colour combinations of this corn will stop you in your tracks and are unlike any other corn we've seen. Hence why the cobs have become internet superstars as easily as a meme! Un-husking an ear feels like opening a gift, with a breathtaking reveal. As the name implies, each translucent kernel shines with the brilliance of a beautiful piece of glass. Not only are the ears highly decorative, but they are also edible, and can be used for popcorn, parching, cornmeal, or flour. Glass Gem was bred by Cherokee breeder and seedsman Carl Barnes, and was developed by crossing a mixture of Native American corns, including popcorns and flour corns.
Growing corn is pretty easy if you provide your seeds with highly fertile soil. Seed can be sown in early- to mid-May depending on the year (corn likes a slightly-warmed-up soil for germination). For continued harvest all season, sow crops at two-week intervals until mid-summer. Drop seeds into furrows about 1 inch deep. Begin with spacing of three to four inches and thin the plants once up to a spacing of six to eight inches. Rows should be a good 30 or 42 inches apart with this spacing, which matches common widths of garden beds.
Some years corn needs very little attention, but in dry years it will need irrigating. It thrives during the summers when subtropical weather settles in for a couple months. Many critters love to munch on corn, including rodents and, most notoriously, raccoons. Avoid growing corn near chicken coops or pest attractants, and be sure to surround your garden with a good critter fence.
Days to Germination 4 to 6 days
Days to Maturity 110 days
Planting Depth ¾ inch
Spacing in Row 12 inches
Spacing Between Rows 24-36 inches
Height at Maturity 72 to 96 inches
Width at Maturity 6 inches
Sun Preference Full Sun
Hollis Chitto's beadwork bag features miscellaneous glass beads that he collected from his previous works to depict the jewel-like kernels of Glass Gem Corn. This echoes the way that the corn itself exists through cross-pollination and genetic diversity that shines through the work of previous generations.
About Hudson Valley Seed Company
They are a values-driven seed company that practices and celebrates responsible seed production and stewardship. Hudson Valley are best known for their beautiful artist-design seed packs (Art Packs) that appeal to gardeners, gift buyers, and lovers of art and nature.
These Art Packs, most fundamentally, tell stories. Hudson Valley challenges artists to convey in a manner that is fully their own, the history and meaning of the seed variety contained in each pack. These stories were once integral to traditional societies-stories of seeds were often origin stories for entire communities and peoples, and the lore and beliefs that accumulated around seed varieties reflected the nearly familial way in which gardeners and farmers regarded their crops. Our society is, by and large, no longer connected to plants this way. But we like to think these Art Packs help to stitch our fragmented world back together: useful seeds, evocative art, both equally valuable to our experience of being human.