indian trilogy

[adam connor]

i read about this roation of beans (french climbing) sweetcorn and squash it apparently is a native american traditional. the beans use the sweetcorn for support and in return give nitrogen, the squash provide mulch/cover and coolness for sweetcorns roots. i planted them out but the beans seem more frisky than the corn- so do I have to support them anyway - did I plant at wrong times?

[Jaxom]

Adam the technique you are talking about is called "the three sisters". Beans, Sweetcorn and Winter Squash work well together and will help each other out as they grow. A search on "Google" using the search "the three sisters" in the quotation marks will bring up a whole host of sites based in the USA that will help show you what to do and when to do it.

[adam connor]

thanks helpful links and advice

[Shortie]

Oh dear.... I must have a dirty mind... indian trilogy, three sisters...

[Jaxom]

Shortie, you have been spending too much time with Nick and Lesley Jay.
Slapped legs for you my girl.

[Lesley Jay]

Hey Jaxom!! Why has my name been dragged into it?? Anyone would think I had a reputation!!!!!!!!

[Shortie]

I know Jax, they are a bad influence. Before I joined I was soooo innocent...

( Have I fooled anyone yet? )

But it does sound like a good use of space if you can get it to work though... although wouldn't the beans strangle the sweetcorn? I'll have nose on google now for next year maybe....? Any other planting scheme similar for other veg?

[pigletwillie]

I always plant my pumpkins and squash between the sweetcorn but generally plant my beans in a dedicated bed. I plant my corn if 5" wide beds and would damage the corn trying to get to pick the beans in the middle.

In the states the beans are generally left to pick as "haricots" rather than young as we pick them and the whole lot is harvested together. The pumpkins and squash however really do keep the weeds down between the corn and save loads of space as its a "two for one" crop.

[Jaxom]

the indians plant out their plots on wide areas of land so harvesting the beans is not a problem as there are wide spaces to walk between plants.
They are set out like bellow.

C................C ................C.............C
....B.........B......B..........B.....B.......B....B
.
.
S........................S .......................S
.
.
C................C ................C.............C
....B.........B......B..........B.....B.......B....B
.
.
S........................S .......................S.
.
.
C................C ................C.............C
....B.........B......B..........B.....B.......B....B
.
.
S........................S .......................S

C= Sweetcorn
B= Beans
S= Winter Squash

[Shortie]

I'm really starting to see the extra value of squashes now. Last year was my first really successfully year with them, and they're fantastic groung cover/weed supressant.

I've got sweetcorn kernals to plant next year, and I've heard sweetcorn and be hard to grow, but even if I don't have luck with them, they can grow round my runner bean wigwams (as long as I keep them under control so they don't grow up the wigwam too....)What a fantastic way to preserve moisture for the runner bean roots!

You can see it now can't you.... I won't use mulch, I'll use prickly squashes for ground cover! Or then agan, maybe not

[adam connor]

I found sweetcorn hard to germinate so would strongly recommend inside germination and planting out so you don't waste a lot of your plot or have to replant. Alternative try what I have done with my "catch-up sowing" (used for the above reason), which is plant 2-3 seed of each in each hole and I'll then thin as they emerge. My trilogy is going okay now.

[Shortie]

Glad to hear. If you remember, please post after harvesting to let us know how it went?

[Earthbabe]

I would love to give this method a try next summer. Will let you know how it goes. Wonderful use of space. Thank you.