🌽 Update on the 3 Sisters Plantings 🍉 WizStead Post #18
Corn, beans & squash = synergy
Commonly called the three sisters.
- An age old tradition dating back to Native Americans.
- Corn provides a "trellis" for the pole beans to grow up.
- Beans provide needed nitrogen to the soil.
- Squash provides a living mulch to keep weeds down and moisture up.
- Companion planting at it's best!
✔ TTD When corn is 4" tall, thin to 4 plants per hill and plant beans
I really have a hard time thinning plants, but I have learned over time it's something you must do.
Time to plant some pole beans
- I poked a hole with my finger, dropped in a bean, tamped in the dirt and watered.
- 4 beans per hill.
✚ TTD Mulch with black plastic, grass clippings and straw.
- I have mulched some with grass clippings.
Still a lot to go...
NOTES
- Only 1 variety of corn has germinated.
- I think this is due to using old seeds.
- During our recent move, I gathered up any seed packets I found into 1 basket. Some of these are years old...
- Guess I'll get some fresh seed and replant this weekend.
- I think this is due to using old seeds.
- Squash and melons are up.
- The Sugar Baby melons only have a couple of sprouts.
- Again probably due to using old seeds, so will replant this weekend.
- The Sugar Baby melons only have a couple of sprouts.
Around the garden
My first broccoli forming a head
Taters are blossoming
- Have a good stand of peas.
- Onions are looking good.
- Have a few beets that have germinated.
- Had to replant a few tomatoes and peppers.
- About 1/2 the strawberries made it.
- 7 of the 10 in the grow bag survived.
- Not many of the sunflowers germinated.
- Still waiting on marigolds, zinnias and a few other flowers to sprout.
- Dang old seed! haha I won't do that again...
- Peonies are starting to bloom.
- Tall bearded iris have bloomed and are fading.
- Several asparagus grew what is now a fern looking stalk.
- some of my transplanted bushes didn't survive.
- The reblooming Josee lilac bush bloomed.
- Some grass I seeded is doing good. Still lots of leveling and cleaning up before I seed more...
- Have pulled several more stumps.
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Old seed, eh. We always get starter plants, so we can kill those off instead. :)
Actually, most things are looking good so far. We've had a couple of days of over 80 degree weather that most of the plants didn't seem to appreciate, and then the sun promptly went back behind the clouds, but without really any rain. Temperature is in the lowers 70s today, and it is a little muggy, but nothing major.
Haha yes, those can be killed too! haha
We've been really dry here. 80s high 60ish lows. Some 90s coming up with only a 20% chance of rain for the weekend. I water most with a hose. Some with my bucket...
Planting some bush beans this weekend. Not sure how old those packets are... wish me luck! (Plenty of time to replant if they don't take...)
Good luck! I wish I could be as confident about any replanting we would try to do here, as you are there. It's really best to try to get things in as early as possible as soon as spring warms up, but then the rains, when they come, and wash everything out. So, we're lucky to get things in by mid-May and by then, unless we have an unseasonably extended summer, some plants don't make it to maturity. The tomatoes here are particularly problematic.
It sure looks like you are going to have your hands full at harvest time! We have been thinking about trying the three sisters planting, but I haven't tried it yet. We were going to this year, but when trying to get seeds out before the rain, we just wanted to make sure they got in. I will look forward to seeing how the three sisters method works for you. Great Job!
This is my first time trying it. Corn is such a heavy feeder. I'm thinking the beans may help. Guess we'll see...
Hmm I'll be. So is the one that germinated. Silver Queen. Guess I just got lucky with that one...
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I stopped by to say thank you for the gift, @wizardave, and got caught up in your companion planting and old seeds. Come spring, I think we need to do a small bed of corn (which we call mielies), some squash and beans - all makes sense to me. On the old seed: seems it's only a problem with commercial seed. The Husband planted some onion seeds - commercial - and none came up. Turns out that the entire batch - not just our measly sewing had not come up and that the brand had been removed from the shelf. Now he's started again. Now, to harvested seed: we got some fava (we call them broad) beans from a neighbour because we couldn't find commercial ones. Full germination. Go figure. Or, perhaps it's because they were last season and not older.
Thanks again for the gift - I am still learning my way around this platform and how it works - the community and the technology, so appreciate all the support I can get.
You're welcome.
https://steemit.com/steemit/@wizardave/the-ultimate-strategy-guide-set-to-help-newbies-make-money-on-steemit
@wizardave ah, thanks for that. As I recall, my dad, a horticulturist would tell you that untreated seeds can be viable for centuries. I would imagine, though, that standard germination times might be longer because of their weathered hides, so to speak. I am so going to check out your link and have a look at @energyaddict22 - I am wanting to sit down and collate some of the stuff I'm learning that may help other minnows - wanting to find the time, too, and not succeeding.
Thanks for the wishes and look forward to watching your crops grow 😎