There are many variables. Variety will have some effect. Soil health. Spacing. Timing. When did you plant your corn, what variety is it, and how are they spaced?

I read a fascinating link the other day related to the three sisters gardening. You can find it at http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/buffalo/garden/garden.html. It relates the agricultural practices of the Hidatsi Souix Indians, who planted corn, beans and squash. I don't know if this is the same method used by Navajo (who made three sisters farming famous), but it was striking to me in how different the author's source described planting to how three sisters planting is described in contemporary, non-Native sources.

First, they'd clear the field and make hills 4' apart, minimum, more if they planned to interplant with beans. Into these hills they'd plant corn. Between these hills, they might later plant beans. The beans described were NOT climbing beans, but more like bush beans. They were not eaten green either, but threshed for the seeds after the bean plants had died.

Now you might ask, where do the squash grow? Well, as it turns out, the squash grow next door or in another field. They don't grow *with* the corn and beans at all. They called it the three sisters farming because that's all they grew. Corn, beans and squash were the sole garden crops they cultivated. Anything else they'd gather from the wild.

So at least for the Hidatsi Souix, the idea that the corn, beans and squash were interplanted together with beans climbing the corn stalks and squash being shaded by both is bunk.

Maybe the Navajo or some of the southern tribes did it differently - I don't know.

Here's a little easier way to access the link Gamebird mentioned above. It's a good read.

Here is a link that might be useful: Buffalo Bird Womans Garden

How interesting her stories are....I can't believe that I spent such a long time reading that but I couldn't tear myself away..

It could possibly be that I planted everything just a little too close together. Hopefully next year my garden will be expanded :) I am just worried that I won't have any ripe pumpkins. Oh well, I'll try something a little different next year. Thanks for your help!

Mellikat, comparison and contrast between Wampanoag, Hidatsa, and Zuni three sisters gardens can be found at the link below.

ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service is a source of good info when they've got something on a subject. Look at "An Appendix to Companion Planting: Basic Concepts & ResoucesAncient Companions" about half way down the page.

Steve

Hey everyone,

I posted this on my profile at the end of june. Hopefully it can give some info to a novice or two.

Corn is tasseling ! My corn has tassels in June in Idaho. YEAH BUDDY!

For those of you who are interested I will cover some of my techniques.

This year I choose the three sister method. This method of planting has been employed by native Americans for thousands of years and involves three crop varieties planted in poly-culture. The three varieties are corn, beans, and squash. This method came of years of trial and error from people who had to make sure the garden plot they planted produced as much as possible to feed them for the coming year. If correctly executed, this method can provide an excellent variety of vegetables to meet your nutritional needs. Here is what I planted and how my garden has performed so far:

I choose two varieties of corn and early and late variety. Each mound has 6 corn plants 2 early and 4 late plants. Imagine a round hill, on one side of the hill you have three corn plants 1 early on the outside edge and 2 late more toward the inside so you have a triangle of plants, the same is repeated on the other side so the to early plants are farthest spaced from each other. This spaces out the demands on the soil and gives a longer more even harvest of corn. Now on the outside edge of the mound I planted an heirloom variety of scarlet runner beans. These beans came from Mexico from a group working to preserve a variety that has been handed down from pre-colonial times, just the right touch for my three sisters garden. Those mounds are in a grid pattern on 4 foot centers. Each four mounds completes a square and in the center of these squares goes your squash mound. In my squash mounds I planted: pumpkin (against my better judgment but the family really wanted it), acorn squash, cucumbers, green and yellow zucchini, and cantaloupe. The squash forms a dense matt across the floor of your garden to ensure no weeds can compete for nutrients and water. The corn provides shade for the squash and a support for the beans to grow on. The beans, being in the legume family, fix nitrogen in their roots which fertilize the corn. The beans also bind the corn to each other so none blow over in Idahos high winds. And that is the three sisters gardening method...The Indians threw a whole fish at the bottom of every mound but Ill tell you what I did for mine.

In my previous posts you might have read that I dug in manure and compost into my new garden plot...all by hand...the shovel and I got to be good friends that week. That work set the foundation for a healthy, happy garden. So in went the seeds and a week or so later the happy little guys were raising their leaves up to the sun and my beaming smiles. Another week or so went by and now I took a gallon of blackstrap molasses, watered down with about 16 quarts of water and watered all the seedlings with that black mess, and boy did they love it. Another two weeks went by and this time I broadcast out a healthy amount of ironite (iron sulfate I believe) and Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate). I waited another week and in went some more Epsom salts and now the smelly stuff....Alaskan fish emulsion. Those of you familiar with changing fish tank water will know the smell of this stuff....its brown, about the thickness of maple syrup but not nearly as appealing. The fish goo happened yesterday. I saw those tassels on the corn and just couldnt help myself the organic fertilizer had to come out.

Other garden info:

Around the three sisters garden I planted a row of marigolds to contain the bugs, right behind those I planted a mixed row of three varieties of onions and three types of garlic. This is the defense against insects...between the marigolds and the onion/garlics these plantings form a formidable barrier, most bugs just keep on walking.

On the north side of the three sisters garden I planted three mounds of sunflowers. These are HUGE, taller than me and any day now I should start seeing flowers. Sunflowers are important oil and mineral crops and deserve a spot in anyones garden.

Now for whats in the rest of the garden. The three sisters garden takes up about half of my veggie garden the other half has quite a bit in it as well.
Here is a list: dill, basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, bell peppers, jalapenos, tobasco peppers, tomatoes, lettuce, peas, amaranth, sweet leaf steevia, mustard, sage, lavender, tomatillo, and goji berries.

When I first started the garden this spring I would get mentally lost daydreaming of what was to come, working my way through the plot taking out the small invading weeds, and planning the drip irrigation system or where to plant what. Now, just yesterday my neighbor was looking for me and couldnt see me as I was lost in the jungle of my garden. And my smile just keeps on growing ;) :) :)

Thanks for reading this far guys....go play in the dirt already.

Oh and as an update. I my corn has since silked and the early variety I planted is starting to swell in its husks. I should have fresh corn within two weeks or so I imagine. I have a number of pumkins maturing, the scarlet runner beans are starting to grow with the largest about 5 inches long. Zuccini everywhere, and a good number of acorn squash. The only things I am disapointed with are the cucumbers and the cantelope. I guess we will see what if anything they will do but so far the only fruit is to small to make a note of. OK the tomotoes are pretty small too but really they were not my focus this year its was all corn and it sure shows. http://www.ida.net/kralen/garden072007.jpg

Thanks digit for the link. When I planted, I used what seemed to be a combination of the Wampanoag and HIdatsa gardens (from Renee's garden site). Anyway, my corn is still looking good. Some even have tassels popping up. My beans and squash plants are still small but one or two are growing bigger than others. I am still pretty new to gardening so I am still trying to shove as many things as I can in one small space. (You should see the jungle that is my tomatoes.) All this trial and error should help for next year, hopefully!!