Ruby Queen Hybrid, Ruler of Summer Corn
We recently got the opportunity to try a hybrid red sweet corn that a colleague of ours, John Wilson, grew for the first time this summer on Old Stonehouse Farm, which he and his wife Sarah’s family operate. Although I live in Pennsylvania now, which admittedly has its own fine summertime produce offerings, I am a New Jerseyan at heart, which means when summer comes, I cannot get enough of corn, tomatoes, blueberries, and peaches. Early word-of-mouth about the red corn from friends who tried it indicated that it was “awesome” and that would turn the water slightly red when we boiled it.
Well, both of those things turned out to be true, but there’s a lot more interesting information to impart from the farmer himself. Wilson said he bought the seeds from Burpee and described the Ruby Queen Hybrid as “hybrid sugar enhanced corn,” designed to give a sweetness to red corn. He planted red, white and yellow corn this year and found that the red had the least amount worms as the corn matured. And although the vivid red color dissipated somewhat once it was boiled, when we bit into it, you could still see that it was red. It didn’t matter; it was different and delicious.
The farm’s main crop is hay, which is sold to horse farms and dairies in the area, and they raise chickens along with pastured cows and pigs without hormones or antibiotics. In the past, we have bought asparagus and tomatoes from him. Wilson says they don’t have a farmstand, but they sell what they have, when they have it, after they’ve eaten, jarred, frozen or canned their share.
He’s always looking to try new things, so next year, they’re going to plant artichokes and anticipate a new crop of blackberries and raspberries. I can’t wait. In the meantime, we’re anticipating a few bushels of potatoes. I feel blessed to have such immediate access to quality produce from affable, knowledgeable farmers, and feel as though we’re making a real difference by directly paying the person responsible for the food, with few carbon miles and no supermarket interference.
