Dryland Hopi Corn 2025

Our long term plan is to add inorganic fertlizer and plant a perennial legume crop which can then be harvested as a nutrient rich organic fertilizer/mulch and used for animal feed. Animal waste can then be recycled back to other crops and the legume field. In Sep 2024 we spread 1500lbs of fertlizer on 5 acres and tilled in 3 acres in preparation for alfafa seeding before it was apparent that rain was not coming anytime soon. We were also concerned that a larger area of exposed dry ground would increase the chances of damage by wind erosion. Rain did not come till Nov 1st which was too late to plant alfalfa, but the soil was uneven with residual stubble that prevented an noticable soil loss. Unfortunately fertlizer was spread in an area that is not being used this year with minimal protection from wind, so we decided to plant this area with corn in May 2025, without re-tilling. Though there will be some competition with annual spring grass not tilling will conserve soil moisture. The corn will help protect the soil and make use of the residual fertilzer spread in September.

In 2024, the Hopi Blue Corn North Field (1.5 acres) was planted too densely and due to lack of moisuture fertlizer wasn't fully utilized, low yield = low fertilizer consumption. We will plant this area in spring 2025 without retilling to conserve soil moisture and make use of previous years fertlizer.

Other areas used in 2024 will be planted, and all areas will be planted using various experimental spacings using the augur/drill method, at much lower density than in previous years.

What Planting Arrangement Minimizes Competition but Maximizes Density?

A hexagonal lattice. Plants growing next to each other compete for water, nutrients, and light. It is so important that millions are spent on precision seeding equipment and herbicides every year. To maximize density and reduce competition plants need to be of equal distance from each other (equidistant). Planting in a a square pattern is equidistant but it is not the highest density configuration. Offsetting each row by half (isoceles triangle) is better because it increases the distance between plants in adjacent rows, but it palnt density is the same as for a square. The corners of an equilateral triangle are equidistant and 6 equilateral triangles can be arranged in a hexagon resulting in optimal density and all plant distances being equal. This means that if plant spacing within a row is 1 (foot or meter) then the distance between rows is 0.86667 (feet or meters) or conversely if row spacing is x, multiply x by 1.154 to get plant spacing. To plant 1 foot apart space rows 10.3" x apart with plants 12" apart within rows offset by half.

To assist in mapping out an area, make a equilateral triangle with 6 pieces of 1 x 2 wood and holes with bolts to adjust the side lengths. Overlap 2 pieces for each side to make it adjustable, eg single bolts at corners and 2 bolts at the overlap. Adjust the overlap on each 2 pieces of the 3 sides to create an equilateral triangle and get the desired spacing, and plant at the vertices. Flip the triangle on one edge and plant again at the new corner. Or flip on the corner along a straight row to mark within the row and an adjacent row at the other corner. Another way is to make rows 0.8666 distance apart and roughly line up each location between that of adjacent rows. Perfection is not necessary but if perfect this creates 3 wider rows in 3 directions with 3 narrow alleys in 3 other directions. This hexagonal arangement maximizes inter-plant distances, and increases density and light utilization by 15% over square or offset square planting. Corn planting and harvesting equipment are not optimized for a hexagonal planting arrangement but it is frequently used in orchard plantings.

A yield increase of 15% may not be realized as ground water distribution, nutrients, and soil texture are not homogenous. Also, a small decrease in root overlap may not affect yield significantly in comparison to the extra effort input. To simplify my tests I plan to make plant and row distances equal and offset adjacent rows by half.

How to Treat Corn Seeds to Prevent Mold?

Corn moisture content should be reduced to 15% for short term storage or lower for long term storage. If the corn is not dry enough before storage it will develop mold or sprout decreasing it's viability. The best option is that the corn dries on the stalk in the field before harvest since this doesn't require extra effort and energy. The next best option is to leave it on the cob and store with plenty of ventilation above freezing. Corn will loose about 0.5% moisture per day at 60°F but this can increase to 1% per day at higher temperatures. Do not treat corn seeds at temperatures above 110°F or this can decrease viability.

Corn from 2024 harvest was put in open 3 or 17 gallon plastic bins or piles of corn at 40-65°F or a "plant" room at 60°F. Some of the corn was not dry enough because 20 days later some were sprouting and growing mold, Also, storing boxes of corn in a warm reatively humid "plant" room next to my orchid grow tent exhaust wasn't ideal. I found out some of the ears at the bottom of the bins near the exhaust were sprouting and molding. The corn in the top 2/3 of the bins was generally unaffected.

The damaged ears were separated or discarded. Some of the ears were spread out on the floor with convections heaters and others were treated in a dehydrator. The dehydrator was put on the lowest setting at 105°F with 2 batches of corn each swapped 12 hours on 12 hours off for 5 days. After treatment, the germination rates of "good" and "slightly molded" corn seeds were 95% and 90% respectively. Dehydration treatment at 105°F did not significantly reduce germination rate.

Pueblo Corn Varieties For Planting in 2025

We had many color variations of each variety and there are too many to plant them all. The Kikam Hu:n was starchy and we won't be planting this in 2025. Most seeds were saved on the cob and cobs from special color variations and highly producing plants (4, 6, up to 8 ears) were separated and labeled (examples Hopi White Super 4, Hopi Pink Super 6, or Concha White Super 8). Color is not a good indication of variety. Special colors can be easily identifed at planting but ears from highly producing plants need to be separated and labeled. Hopi Blue was planted last in 2024 so we'll plant it first in 2025.

Hopi Corn Batch List 2024

• Concha White (mixed with select Hopi White and Hopi Pink)
• Hopi Pink
• Hopi Blue
• Hopi White
• Kikam Hu:n (Pima 60 Day Corn)
• Smoik Hu:n (Tohono O'odham 60 Day Corn)
• Wikti & Wikti (VCOO)

Dryland Hopi Corn Experiments For 2025

To increase production for labor and materials input plant spacing needs to be optimized.

Effects of Reduced Plant Density on Unirrigated Dryland Hopi Corn

• Less competition for water, light, and nutrients,
• Quality and yield are increased per material inputs if density is optimized.
• Increased chance of soil erosion depending on planting arrangement.
• Increased chance of lodging and damage by wind if not using hills.
• Cross pollination reduced and not as efficient if not using hills.
• Decreased humidity and increased evaporation if not using hills.
• Less shading and increased temperatures if not using hills.
• Increased labor and decreased yield per area cultivated.
• Decreased labor per yield output if using hills.

To minimize competition and get the most plants per area, plant corn individually equidistant such that plants in each row are midway between plants of adjacent rows. Studies have shown that multiple permeable barriers perpendicular to prevailing winds reduce wind and erosion caused by wind more than impermeable barriers. Wind goes over and wind speed is reduced only very near impermeable barriers. This indicates that even spacing or evenly spaced hill planting may better mitigate the negative effects of wind on crops and soil. A barrier only reduces wind speeds in the area downwind that is within 3 times the height of the barrier. If rows or hills are spaced 9' apart the distance between rows will be more than 3x the plant height until plants reach 3 feet in height. While increasing inter-plant competition within a hill, hill planting has the advantages of decreasing labor inputs per plant, increasing the efficiency of pollination, reducing damage by wind and pests, and reducing evaporation by creating a microclimate. As we still do not know optimal plant density or how hill planting actually affects yield 3 experiments intially come to mind.

1. Determinte optimal density, plant corn individually 3' x 3' to 6' x 6' apart.
2. Determine optimal plants per hill with a 9' x 9' hill spacing (2 - 7).
3. Determine optimal hill spacing (too many variations to test).

The initial value ranges are based on traditional native planting practices with hills spaced 12' x 12' apart with 4 - 7 plants per hill resuling in a density of 20 - 36 sq. ft. per plant. It is likely the optimal number of plants per hill depends on hill spacing. It would also be good to test the optimal plants per hill with various spacing between hills (9' and 20'). In the Collins journal article hills per spaced 20' apart with more plants per hill, so this could be the direction for future experiments. We'll try to test single planting and plants per hill first and use these results to infer a starting point for optimal hlll spacing in future experiments.

How To Grow Dryland Hopi Corn

Drought Tolerant Hopi Corn Seeds

Dryland Hopi Corn Experiment 2023

Winter Wheat 2023

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