Corn?

[pipes18079]

Some one I know talked to another fisherman on winni. and he said to drop corn down the hole and put some on a hook on the bottom. I know corn works for bows but never heard of it for lakers but he swears by it I guess. I have been running smelt,shinners,suckers on tipup with very little success caught like six all year.

[deadsmelthead]

Heres my 2 cents on corn.. It works.. BUT,,, it can be bad for the fish. I guess that it can stop them from being able to pass food thru their digestive system effectively if they eat to much of it, so if your dumping a can of corn down a few holes it could be bad news for a few fish. It's not like your gonna ruin the hole lake and kill a bunch of fish just make a few of them real uncomfortable for awhile. One of the biggest Browns I have ever seen was caught on corn, I still can't believe it to this day. I know a few people that use it as chum for lakers and it seems to work, I do not use it tho.

[jflood]

I used corn once for bows with no success.  Then I read, on this site, that it was bad for trout and in fact did kill a few trout (per a posts on this site). Since I didn't catch any fish with it and I read all the negative press using corn I just stopped using it. Thats just me. I am  not judging anyone who uses corn but I just use other baits and techniques for trout. Good Luck 

[Scientist]

If you want to attract fish to your area by using corn, try a can of cream corn, not the whole can at once but a teaspoon at a time. It is regular corn that has almost all pieces ground up and there is no cream in it like most believe. I have caught lakers from deep water and when I got them to the boat it was regurgitating corn, so people are using whole corn as chum and the fish are eating it. I don’t use chum while freshwater fishing, the only time I use chum is while deep sea fishing for tuna. Ocean is a big place and need a little something to keep them interested. 

[Fishrmn]

Heres my 2 cents on corn.. It works.. BUT,,, it can be bad for the fish. I guess that it can stop them from being able to pass food thru their digestive system effectively if they eat to much of it, so if your dumping a can of corn down a few holes it could be bad news for a few fish. It's not like your gonna ruin the hole lake and kill a bunch of fish just make a few of them real uncomfortable for awhile. One of the biggest Browns I have ever seen was caught on corn, I still can't believe it to this day. I know a few people that use it as chum for lakers and it seems to work, I do not use it tho.

It ain't bad for the fish.  They eat snails that have shells that are harder than corn hulls.  I live in Utah, where corn is illegal to use as bait.  The reason has nothing to do with it being harmful to fish.  It was used extensively as chum for years.  it was banned because there were bays of certain reservoirs that literally smelled like a still because of all of the corn that people had chummed with.  The state banned chumming.  It also banned corn for use as bait, because if someone had corn to use for bait, there was nothing that could be done to stop them from chumming with it.

Fishrmn

[jflood]

It ain't bad for the fish.  They eat snails that have shells that are harder than corn hulls.  I live in Utah, where corn is illegal to use as bait.  The reason has nothing to do with it being harmful to fish.  It was usedextensively as chum for years.  it was banned because there were bays of certain reservoirs that literally smelled like a still because of all of the corn that people had chummed with.  The state banned chumming.  It also banned corn for use as bait, because if someone had corn to use for bait, there was nothing that could be done to stop them from chumming with it.

Fishrmn

I can verify the snails. Here is one I caught a week ago. He entire digestive tract was filled with these

[barnze73192]

I have caught tons of bows in the fall on corn... at the inlet of a creek on the great sacandaga lake

[peterpike]

if u are concerned about hurting the fish with corn, powerbait makes a corn nugget that ive found to be just as effective as the real thing.

[stevek]

I fish for bows with corn mid-late summer and do real good. That said, I noticed very soon while gutting a batch that they ate so much of it there stomachs were stretched out BIG. I only chum with small amounts of cream corn now and use whole kernels for bait (1-2 on a tiny leadhead), works good. 8)

[Whitefish Slayer]

It ain't bad for the fish.  They eat snails that have shells that are harder than corn hulls.  I live in Utah, where corn is illegal to use as bait.  The reason has nothing to do with it being harmful to fish.  It was used extensively as chum for years.  it was banned because there were bays of certain reservoirs that literally smelled like a still because of all of the corn that people had chummed with.  The state banned chumming.  It also banned corn for use as bait, because if someone had corn to use for bait, there was nothing that could be done to stop them from chumming with it.

Fishrmn

I tend to disagree.... Have you ever eating corn on the cob and seen what happens... It looks like you didn't chew the corn up at all no matter how much you chew?? Our bodies do not digest corn to well and I feel that fish are the same way...  I've seen snails shells in fish before but i've also seen corn niblets not digested in the fishes rectal passage when cleaning them

[fish_finder]

Most fish can't digest it their stomachs can't break it down, be the same things as you or i eating a cedar shingle or bubble gum, some fish like suckers and carp can digest plant material because their digesstive tracts are specialized for it

[4cator]

Illegal in wyoming

[Fishrmn]

Most fish can't digest it their stomachs can't break it down, be the same things as you or i eating a cedar shingle or bubble gum, some fish like suckers and carp can digest plant material because their digesstive tracts are specialized for it

And if you eat bubblegum, or chew up a cedar shingle, IT WILL PASS. 

Fishrmn

[SeaDog1]

Hello Guys!
Ok! Let's try to get this corn thing settled. It's the corn kernels that fish cannot digest because the outter hulks are made of cellulose and clogs up their intestines and colon. Fish though do like corn for its scent which is sweet.
Try this (It's a very old ice fishing trick)-> Put a can of cream corn in a blender and puree it till its completely liquified. Then cook up some very small pasta ( I use Ramen soup noodles because they are very small and curly and look like the plankton fish eat).

***Cooked soft pasta is digestable by fish.***

Mix the drained (warm) pasta in with the pureed corn mash and let it sit at room temperature for 12 hours or better. The pasta will soak up the corn scent.
**Do not refrigerate as the pasta will stick together into a big lump.**
Go fishing and salt your ice fishing holes with a generous amount of the pasta. The pasta will sink and wiggle on its way down and scent the water column. Re-scent the holes every so often with a smaller amount to keep the fish interested.

Since your not using corn itself to fish or chum with this should not be illegal anywhere where corn is considered illegal. Your using corn scented pasta which is not harmful to fish.

Oh! I also color my pasta with Krazy Dust made by Little-Atom (www.just-fish.com). Comes in 6 different florescent color (Purple/Green/Chartruse/Pink/Red/Orange) and it has C-9 which is an anise scent.
I use this a lot for Kokanee Salmon and it drives them wild.
Give these ideas a try! Nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Tight Lines!!!!

[Fishrmn]

Go fishing and salt your ice fishing holes with a generous amount of the pasta.

Which is chumming, and illegal here in Utah.  But if you were to put it on your hook, you'd be okay.  There are lots of baits that are corn flavored. 

If I could find it, I'd post a study by the Pennsylvania (?) F&G about feeding corn to trout.  They survived a straight corn diet, but didn't grow as fast as trout that were fed normal fish pellets.

Fishrmn

[orviskid]

corn IS bad for trout. they don't digest it just like us. no one said to spread a whole can around, afew pieces here and there is ok, alot, they won't be able to digest it.

[SeaDog1]

Hey Fishrmn!
So spreading or releasing corn scented pasta is considered chumming in Utah and illegal. Yeah! Too bad, only a handful of states don't allow chumming. Here in New England (5 states) it's legal.
Ok! Try this instead. use larger size pasta such as linquine and scent that then use any length you want on a hook. HMMMM? Think I'll try that myself on my next ice fishing trip on some jigs.
Have a Great Weekend!!

Hey Orviskid!
Yes! Corn kernnels are BAD for ALL FISH, even a few pieces, so don't use it EVER!!!
What you want is the scent not the corn kernnels.

[jayswimmer09]

haha i think the consensus is dont use corn!!

[rayfrommaine]

Not in Maine.  8)

[SeaDog1]

Hello Rayfrommaine!
(5 states -> Ma., R.I., CT., VT. and N.H.)
Left out the 6th state, Maine, because you have laws and restrictions quite different that any other state.
Which is GOOD!, because of your special place in preserving and managing your wildlife and their habitabths.
Maine Guides and Wardens do one heck of a job and don't get enough credit.
As far as the rest of the population is concerned--They don't call you "Maineacs" for nothing. LOL

[icedflies]

Did anybody get the chance to try pasta for the first time this weekend?