Nothstine Dent Corn (Zea mays) Organic Seeds – Northern Michigan Heirloom, Sweet Flavor, Best for Cornmeal & Flour

Minimum: 15+ Seeds

The Northern Heirloom Built for Grinding

Most dent corn is grown for feed, bred for yield alone with little thought given to how it eats. Nothstine Dent is different, a Northern Michigan heirloom prized specifically for its genuinely sweet flavor and quality when ground into cornmeal and flour. Developed for a short, cool northern growing season, it's proven itself as a reliable grain crop in climates where many dent corns struggle to mature. This is organic, open-pollinated seed, true to the original variety.

Who Grows Nothstine Dent Corn?
The northern gardener needing a dent corn bred for a genuinely short growing season.
The home miller wanting a variety specifically prized for cornmeal and flour quality.
The heirloom seed saver preserving an authentic Northern Michigan variety.
The homesteader wanting a reliable grain crop for pantry staples rather than feed alone.

What This Northern Heirloom Grain Actually Is
Zea mays 'Nothstine' is an heirloom dent corn developed in northern Michigan, valued for its ability to reliably mature in a shorter, cooler growing season than many dent varieties require. Plants produce ears of yellow dent kernels with a genuinely sweet flavor uncommon among dent corns, which are typically bred for starch content and yield over taste. The kernels grind well into cornmeal and flour, with a flavor and texture growers specifically seek out for baking and traditional cornmeal dishes. As an open-pollinated variety, it breeds true from saved seed, making it a genuine option for growers wanting to maintain their own seed stock year after year. Grown as a warm-season annual, not frost-hardy.

In the Garden & Kitchen

• Cornmeal and flour: Dry and grind mature kernels for cornmeal or flour with genuinely sweet flavor.
• Traditional baking: Use fresh-ground meal in cornbread, muffins, and other traditional cornmeal recipes.
• Short-season grain crop: Grow where a genuinely short growing season limits other dent corn options.
• Heirloom preservation: Grow and save seed to help keep an authentic Northern Michigan variety in circulation.
• Homestead grain storage: Grow as a reliable, storable grain crop for a working homestead pantry.
• Seed saving: Save seed from open-pollinated ears to grow the same true variety year after year.

Growing Nothstine Dent Corn Seeds

• Start method: Direct sow outdoors after last frost, once soil has warmed.
• Germination: Sprouts in 7 to 10 days in warm soil.
• Soil temperature: Germinates best between 60 and 85°F.
• Spacing: Space plants 8 to 12 inches apart in blocks of at least four rows for reliable pollination.
• Sunlight: Full sun.
• Soil: Fertile, well-drained soil with good fertility supports the strongest ear development.
• Watering: Consistent moisture, especially during tasseling and ear formation.
• Pollination: Wind-pollinated; block planting rather than single rows improves kernel fill.
• Days to maturity: Typically ready for grain harvest in 90 to 100 days from seeding.
• Harvest: Allow ears to dry fully on the stalk before harvesting for grinding or storage.
• Hardiness: Grown as a warm-season annual; killed by frost.
• Isolation note: Isolate from other corn varieties to keep seed true if saving for replanting.

Before You Close This Page
This is dent corn bred for flavor as much as reliability, a Northern Michigan heirloom that grinds into genuinely sweet cornmeal and flour rather than just feed. Nothstine Dent handles a short, cool growing season better than many dent varieties, giving northern growers a real option for homegrown grain. It's open-pollinated and easy to save seed from, ready to become a permanent fixture in the garden and pantry alike. Grow the corn that was bred to be eaten, not just harvested.