SWEET CORN Workers detassel sweet corn at Chris Gross Farms. Photos courtesy of Crookham Co. Soil health big focus of women-owned sweet corn seed grower BY DOUG OHLEMEIER ASSISTANT EDITOR F avorable growing conditions, including climate, altitude, degree days and water, help produce longer growing seasons ideal for crop production for Chris Gross Farms, a diversified southwest Idaho farm. The Wilder, Idaho, farm grows sweet corn seed and other crops. The farm began employing more soilfriendly practices in the late 2010s when weed pressure followed a field's soil inconsistency, high water saturation and infiltration issues, said owner Chris Gross. 12 | MARCH 2025 Chris Gross of Chris Gross Farms.