Three Sisters Dancing in the Garden
-an ancient symbiotic relationship-
Expanding the realm of my veggie empire this year has thrown me once again into the strange world of planning and research, a place utterly foreign to my usual chaotic gardening style. My quest for new ideas mostly involved looking for information on companion planting. This seemed the logical route to take as not only am I not one to use pesticides, I am also not the type to waltz into the garden each morning, coffee in hand, delicately shooing away pests from my precious cabbages. Never going to happen.
Alas, a beacon of knowledge emerged: Scott, my garden guru, aka the son-in-law extraordinaire, once again shared his wisdom with me. He asked if I'd heard of the three sisters. I could only assume he wasn't referring to my own three daughters, so naturally, I was intrigued. Turns out, the three sisters to which Scott was referring – corn, beans, and squash, is a companion planting technique that was developed by Native American tribes thousands of years ago.
The term 'Three Sisters' was primarily used by the Iroquois who live in the Northeastern United States and Canada. These crops were considered to be special gifts from Great Spirit and were believed to be protected by the Three Sisters-spirits collectively called the De-o-ha-ko, meaning 'our sustainers' or 'those who support us' (Eames-Sheavly, 1993).
Corn, the tallest sister, is planted first, and acts as the support. Beans, planted when the corn is about 6 inches high, function as the nurturing sister, taking nitrogen from the air and storing it in the soil. And then there's squash, planted at the same time as the beans, that plays the role of the protector of the group, warding off pests with her prickly vines and shady leaves, while also acting as a natural mulch to deter weeds and keep the soil cool. Together, these three become an impressive barrier against pests and the elements.
Eager to give it go and with my newly purchased three sisters combo pack of seeds in hand (which came with a handy planting guide), I'm excited to dive into this new gardening adventure. I'll be sure to keep you updated on the progress of my three sisters as they settle into their little plot of earth in the back left corner of my garden.
