Flint Corn Seeds - Carl's Glass Gem
$3.25
Zea mays
Glass Gem Corn produces the most beautiful, jewel-toned ears you’ll ever see, with kernels in a rainbow of shiny, translucent colors. There's no wonder why this corn is also sometimes called Rainbow Corn. It makes a stunner of a harvest-season table decoration, but it’s not just for looks! The dried kernels also make great home-grown popcorn, or tasty grits and cornmeal if ground. Oklahoma farmer Carl Barnes was a seed preservationist who collected many rare Native American corn varieties, and he spent years breeding his Glass Gem Corn from several of those varieties.
Glass Gem Corn seeds should be direct seeded in a location with full sun and well-drained soil after all danger of frost has passed. Find more growing details in the "How to Grow" tab below. Ears will mature in about 105 days. 21 gram packet contains approximately 125 seeds.
- Planting Information
- How to Grow
- Saving Seeds
| Avg. Seeds/Packet | Packet Weight | Planting Season | Planting Method |
| 125 | 21 g | after last frost | direct seed |
| Seed Depth | Direct Seed Spacing | Soil Temp. Range | Days to Sprout |
| 1" | 3" | 65-85 ℉ | 7-10 |
| Mature Spacing | Sun Requirement | Frost Tolerance | Days to Harvest |
| 8-12" | full sun | frost-sensitive | 105 |
How to Grow Carl's Glass Gem Corn?
Corn should be direct-seeded in the garden after your last frost date. It will germinate best in soil that has warmed to 65 degrees F. Make sure to select a spot in full sun, with well-drained soil. Plant seeds ½” deep, 3” apart in rows 12” apart, and thin the seedlings to 8-10 inches apart in the row once the plants are about 4-6 inches tall. Corn needs to be planted close together in order to ensure proper pollination, so plant in a block rather than a single long row if you’re growing a small garden patch. Grow at least ten plants together - any fewer, and it’s unlikely the ears will get pollinated and produce full cobs. Also be careful of growing different types of corn close to each other - sweet corn pollinated by popcorn or dent corn will not be sweet. If you do want to grow more than one type of corn in your garden, time your plantings about two weeks apart, so that the different varieties tassel at different times - this will help ensure that each variety only pollinates itself.
When to Harvest Carl's Glass Gem Corn?
Ears should be left on the plant until the husks have turned completely brown. Ideally, you can leave them on the plants until they are completely dry, but if you have lots of rainy weather predicted for the late summer and early fall when the corn should be drying, it may be best to bring it indoors to finish drying in a barn or garage. Many people peel the husks back and use them to tie each cob to a laundry line or the like for drying.
How to Save Carl's Glass Gem Corn?
Corn (Zea mays) is wind-pollinated, so it can be tricky to prevent cross-pollination. A mile of separation is recommended for crops that are tasseling/silking at the same time with no barriers in between them. If your property is surrounded by windbreaks like trees or tall buildings, such distant separation is probably not necessary. Isolation can also be achieved by timing your plantings so that corn of one variety is finished being pollinated by the time the next variety begins tasseling. Or, if you can’t be sure of isolation any other way, you can place bags over the shoots (developing ears) you want to save, and hand-pollinate them when the silks emerge. Sow True carries corn shoot and tassel bags in our garden supplies section. Corn seeds will only be viable if left on the plant to mature completely. The husks should be completely brown before harvesting corn for seed. Make sure you allow the ears to dry down completely before shelling the kernels off the cobs, and storing the seed in an airtight container in a cool, dark, and dry location.