Sweetcorn
Sweetcorn can be used straight from the tin, BUT, if you do take a tin with you on your fishing trip please take the empty tin home with you and dispose of it in the dustbin. Better still is to empty the sweetcorn into a spare bait tub and leave the tin at home. Apart from giving anglers a bad name, tins left lying around are a hazard to wildlife and make the countryside look an eyesore.
Sweetcorn is a readily available and cheap bait used to catch all species of fish, especially Tench, Bream, Carp and Roach. It is also excellent to add to groundbait or used as loose feed. Tench and carp anglers regularly lay a bed of sweetcorn, or use it in their groundbait and when the fish turn up it helps to keep them in the swim and the angler can have a ‘bagging’ time. Sweetcorn is also great bait that will sort the better stamp of fish from the bits, so if you are being pestered by smaller fish then using a piece of sweetcorn could put you on to the bigger stuff.
There are various brands and variety of sizes of sweetcorn in both supermarkets and tackle shops. A couple of well known brands, although not the cheapest, are Jolly Green Giant, found in supermarkets and Sensas sweetcorn from tackle shops. Personally I don’t think there is a lot of difference between the cheaper varieties and the more expensive ones, as long as the piece used for hook bait it is not too hard or soft. There are some really cheap tins of sweetcorn that are too hard or too soft and some brands are salty. Some anglers say that quality sweetcorn will get you better results but I have not found this to be true. I’m not saying just buy the cheapest, if you prefer to buy the better quality sweetcorn then do so. Sensas sweetcorn comes in different colours and flavours and some anglers say that when the fishing is hard this can make all the difference.
I empty the sweetcorn into a bait tub and the excess liquid I add to my groundbait. Empty tins can be a danger to wildlife. DON’T leave empty tins behind when you finish fishing, take them home and dispose of them properly.
How to hook sweetcorn
I hook my sweetcorn depending on whether the fishing is hard and the fish are shy of the bait or taking it confidently. If they are taking it confidently then I use a size 14 hook and pass the point of the hook through the narrow end and out through the other side, leaving the point of the hook showing. If you find the piece of sweetcorn too hard or soft, use another piece. If the fishing is hard, I will push the hook into the rounded end of the sweetcorn, turning it as I do, and push the hook into it to bury it. Make sure the sweetcorn is soft enough for the hook to pull through on the strike.
Some anglers use a size 18 or 20 hook and just hook the skin at the ‘open’ end of the sweetcorn.
When fishing for big carp, barbel or bream (especially in Ireland) three or four grains of sweetcorn can be used on a size 8 or 10 hook.
Specimen anglers sometimes hair rig the sweetcorn which, as with other hair rigged baits, leaves the hook bare allowing better hooking.
Feeding sweetcorn
Feeding sweetcorn can depend on what you are fishing for and the amount of fish in your swim. If you are fishing for carp or bream then a bed of sweetcorn laid down is ok because carp and bream can soon mop this up, but if you are fishing for, and catching roach, then I would feed a few grains of sweetcorn (5 or 6) along with a few casters every other cast. This is because sweetcorn can soon fill up smaller fish. It is always better to feed sparingly (you cant take it outa the water once its in). If bites are few, try alternating with, sweetcorn, sweetcorn and caster or caster on the hook. You may start catching smaller fish using caster but if they are being attracted into your swim so will the larger fish!
Colouring and Flavouring sweetcorn
Flavoured and coloured sweetcorn has been used by carp and specimen anglers for some time now with Scopex and Tutti Frutti flavouring and red colouring being favourites.
Looking around your local tackle shop you will see that sweetcorn can be bought in a variety of different flavours and colours from bait companies. This can be quite expensive when considering you can flavour and colour sweetcorn yourself for a fraction of the cost. To do this simply put your sweetcorn into a plastic bag and add your chosen flavouring and colour – shake it up and leave it overnight..
Another favourite that is quite an effective bait in the winter is curried sweetcorn. Using a strong smelling curry powder such as Tandori, mix as above using 2 or 3 teaspoons of the curry and leave overnight. You will also notice that this will colour the sweetcorn a yellowish brown.
Don’t be afraid to try different flavourings and colours.
Flavourings and colourings can be bought in small bottles from most supermarkets.
Imitation sweetcorn
Imitation sweetcorn is a rubber imitation grain of sweetcorn. It is sold as pop-up bait or sinking bait. I have not tried these yet but they do look like the real thing. Usually sold for around £2.75 for approximately 10 pieces.
