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I'm growing the Three Sisters this year and I've learned a few things... The corn needs soil mounded around the bottom after it starts to grow because it will p

I'm growing the Three Sisters this year and I've learned a few things... The corn needs soil mounded around the bottom after it starts to grow because it will put out additional roots for stability. Otherwise, a strong gust of wind can bring it down. This probably is less of an issue once the beans are established. For the squash, make sure it's something "compatible" with the beans. The vine-like squashes, like butternut, provide the same shade cover (weed prevention) without growing as tall as zucchini and other summer squash. Finally, if the beans don't start up the corn before the squash gets big, they can get "lost" in the underlayer and won't get enough sunlight. I'm not expecting a huge yield because I planted in a small area, but I love how it's turning out! Edit: I decided to try after reading Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer. What a lovely book! I strongly recommend it.

horsawlarway 3y ago
We've done it for the last 5 years. For the most part things grew well - one frustration: 12 corn stalks was NOT enough. The article hints at it near the bottom: > Corn is wind-pollinated and while capable of self-pollinating you will have more success with more plants. It is best to have at least 10-20 corn plants to provide sufficient pollen availability but plant more if you have the space to increase your success. I would not recommend anything less than 20 corn plants, and if you are planting somewhere with some wind protection... more still. Our first 2 years - the corn was not adequately pollinated (12 plants in year 1, and 24 in year 2). You can still eat some of it, but an ear that's only 20% kernel and 80% empty is a bummer. The squash and beans are still delish.
- changoplatanero 3y ago
  I planted four corn plants and had to hand pollinate it. Tedious to do it that way but I agree with you that it won’t naturally be pollinated with so few plants
  - spathi_fwiffo 3y ago
    I wonder if a box-fan would work.
  - MostlyStable 3y ago
    How were you hand pollinating? I've done it with ~100 plants and it takes ~5 minutes every couple of days for a few weeks. Certainly not _nothing_ but relative to other garden tasks, pretty easy.
- MostlyStable 3y ago
  I've grown field corn the last several years with ~100 plants. While I did not plant in a wind-pollinating maximizing way, my experience is that anyone who is planting at home scale needs to be ready to hand pollinate. I would be shocked if 10-20 plants, no matter how they were planted and what the wind conditions are, would have particularly high pollination rates.

horsawlarway 3y ago

We've done it for the last 5 years. For the most part things grew well - one frustration: 12 corn stalks was NOT enough. The article hints at it near the bottom: > Corn is wind-pollinated and while capable of self-pollinating you will have more success with more plants. It is best to have at least 10-20 corn plants to provide sufficient pollen availability but plant more if you have the space to increase your success. I would not recommend anything less than 20 corn plants, and if you are planting somewhere with some wind protection... more still. Our first 2 years - the corn was not adequately pollinated (12 plants in year 1, and 24 in year 2). You can still eat some of it, but an ear that's only 20% kernel and 80% empty is a bummer. The squash and beans are still delish.

changoplatanero 3y ago
I planted four corn plants and had to hand pollinate it. Tedious to do it that way but I agree with you that it won’t naturally be pollinated with so few plants
- spathi_fwiffo 3y ago
  I wonder if a box-fan would work.
- MostlyStable 3y ago
  How were you hand pollinating? I've done it with ~100 plants and it takes ~5 minutes every couple of days for a few weeks. Certainly not _nothing_ but relative to other garden tasks, pretty easy.
MostlyStable 3y ago
I've grown field corn the last several years with ~100 plants. While I did not plant in a wind-pollinating maximizing way, my experience is that anyone who is planting at home scale needs to be ready to hand pollinate. I would be shocked if 10-20 plants, no matter how they were planted and what the wind conditions are, would have particularly high pollination rates.