Supersweet Sweet Corn Cultivar Evaluation for Northern Indiana — 2013

Indiana sweet corn acreage harvested for fresh market averaged 5,633 acres annually from 2010-2012, with a yield of 71 cwt/acre (160 crates or 3.5 tons per acre) and an annual value of $13.7 million (USDA NASS, 2013). Indiana ranked 19th among states for production of fresh market sweet corn and produced about 0.8% of the nation’s total in 2012. The 2007 USDA Ag Census reported 603 Indiana farms producing sweet corn for fresh markets and 51 farms selling to processors. Sweet corn fields for fresh market sales are located throughout the state. In northern Indiana, bicolor corn is most commonly grown. Varieties with improved eating quality are of interest to both producers and consumers. Producers are also interested in yield, ear size, appearance, and plant characteristics. ‘Supersweet’ types are popular in many markets. These varieties have high kernel sugar content and low conversion of sugars to starch, usually due to the shrunken-2 gene. This paper reports on three yellow, four white, and 23 bicolor supersweet sweet corn entries that were evaluated at the Pinney-Purdue Agricultural Center in Wanatah, Indiana