Quote:
Originally Posted by Gordon[_6_]
A friend told me about the Three Sisters growing method.
Apearently It comes from the Native Americans who would
grow Corn, Beans and Squash together. The corn stalks
would provide a trellis for the beans to grow on, and
the squash would grow on the ground and provide cover
to control the weeds. Sounds intresting.
Anyone else heard of it? Anyone tried it?
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you know Gordon, i head this earlier and I was just wondering if anyone has tried the three sisters native american farming method? i saw it on a BBC program "my dream farm" and looked it up on google, it seems extremely clever and perfect for those who dont have much space.
Essentially you build a mound of earth around 12 inches high and 20 inches across, you plant maize in the middle of the mound then 1-2 weeks later you plant squash and beans around the edge alternating between the two.
It works well in that each element or sister supports the life of the other. The maize provides a platform for the beans to climb, eliminating the need for poles, the beans fix nitrogen into the soil improving the yield and health of the maize and squash, the squash covers the gound and stop weeds appearing and helps deter pests with its hairy stem and leaves (this all taken from wikipedia).
It reminds me of the type of farming used in West Africa, very similar, it's so clever because it is self-sustaining and self-supporting, does not need much space and would look pretty too, little pyramids of greenery, flowers and veg.
So has anyone tried this method?