"Knee-high by the Fourth of July" is an adage used by farmers to gauge the success of field corn, from which ethanol, corn syrup, cornstarch, and animal feed are derived.
Unlike field corn, sweet corn crops are harvested early. However, due to cold and wet weather conditions throughout much of the spring and part of June, folks looking to shuck some locally harvested corn for the holiday might not find it as easy as a can of corn.
"It's just the way it is. The weather we had in May and June was really surprising, especially with all the weather we had," said Carl Angiuli of Angiuli's Farm Market.
Mother Nature has pushed the sweet corn harvest back about a week for most local farms. However, area farmers are as cool as corn, given how the crops are turning out.
"It's really pollinating pretty well; it's opening up, sickled out fully, and it's forming its kernels right now," Angiuli explained. In the meantime, Angiuli says they're trucking crops from one of its farms, located in southern Ohio, until they begin harvesting at its local farm next week.
Ears of corn you would find in a grocery or retail store chain are usually shipped up from the south, where states are in the peak of their seasons.
"They're shipping it up here pretty cheap. It didn't cost them nearly as much to grow it as it costs guys around here that got corn this early," said Rick Molnar, manager of Molnar Farms.
Rick Molnar says Molnar Farms is in the same boat as other local farms and will be shipping in fresh corn until harvesting starts next week. Shoppers will be delighted to see that the popular side won't cost them extra amid inflation.
"We're pretty much the same as we were last year. I think most of the farms in the area are kind of there," said Molnar.
Area farmers say corn harvested locally is taken to the market the same day and is fresher and more flavorful than store-bought sweet corn.