Detasseling 101 — S&J Detasseling

+ WHAT IS DETASSELING?Detasseling is the process of removing the tassel from the top of the corn plant to prevent it from pollinating itself. Each seed cornfield has two varieties of plants that we call the male and the female plants. We remove the tassels from the female rows, so the male plants will pollinate the females to create hybrid seed corn. The pollen in the male tassel falls on the silks in the ears of the detasseled plants to produce kernels of corn.Machines called pullers and cutters usually remove 70-90% of the tassels before workers go through the field. Detasselers are “quality control” and remove the tassels the machines left in the field. Sometimes we walk through the field, and sometimes we ride on machines called personnel carriers to do the work.+ WHEN IS DETASSELING?Detasseling usually lasts 3 weeks and generally starts around July 10th . Start dates vary based on factors such as climate and when the corn was planted. Roguing crews usually start the third week of...