Why are my corn plants tasseling without ears?

Check the planting layout first. Corn pollen travels on the wind, so a small patch or a single long row may pollinate poorly. Planting in a block helps. If ears and silks appear, you can also collect pollen from the tassels and gently dust it onto the silks. If there are no ears or silks, hand pollination won’t make them form.

Short, stressed plants can tassel before they’ve developed well, and heat or dry soil can add to the problem. Keep moisture reasonably consistent, especially during hot weather. Low nitrogen can also limit growth, but don’t keep adding fertilizer without checking what the soil needs. Too much can cause its own trouble.

One thing to clarify is whether you’re seeing ordinary tassels at the tops of the stalks, or odd tassel-like growths where ears would normally develop. Those aren’t the same thing. Stress early in growth can lead to unusual development, but if the plants are small and there are no silks yet, give them a little time to see whether ears appear.