17/10: The Three Sisters: who (or what) are they?
An ancient Iroquois method of growing sweet corn, beans and squashes together for mutual support. It can even be done in grow-bags. Please see an article in the Library Section by Liam Devany explaining how to use the Three Sisters Method. In London we need to be sure to use a suitable variety for our climate of sweet corn and bean as our weather is more unpredictable than that of the USA.
Two components that are necessary are a rich compost - such as worm castings or the food waste that is processed at Edmonton - and a very sunny location, particularly needed for good growth on the sweet corn.
Experimenters this year have had great success with this method using grow-bags with Edmonton compost. Use of a natural liquid fertiliser such as comfrey / nettle / or worm tea will aid the growth of the sweet corn in its early stages. The photograph below is of the spectacular
grow-bag using the Three Sisters Method that flourished down at St Luke's Centre until it was harvested. All three plants are visible in the first picture. By August the sweet corn was around 8ft high.
If gardeners in London and of course in Islington decide to try the Three Sisters Method, please could you let Islington Gardeners know via on our email address islingtongardeners2@hotmail.co.uk so that we can run a data tracking sheet of who has planted what variety and then compare success rates later next year - that way we can identify by the end of next year which are the best combinations of these three sisters that work in our climate.
Two components that are necessary are a rich compost - such as worm castings or the food waste that is processed at Edmonton - and a very sunny location, particularly needed for good growth on the sweet corn.
Experimenters this year have had great success with this method using grow-bags with Edmonton compost. Use of a natural liquid fertiliser such as comfrey / nettle / or worm tea will aid the growth of the sweet corn in its early stages. The photograph below is of the spectacular
grow-bag using the Three Sisters Method that flourished down at St Luke's Centre until it was harvested. All three plants are visible in the first picture. By August the sweet corn was around 8ft high.
If gardeners in London and of course in Islington decide to try the Three Sisters Method, please could you let Islington Gardeners know via on our email address islingtongardeners2@hotmail.co.uk so that we can run a data tracking sheet of who has planted what variety and then compare success rates later next year - that way we can identify by the end of next year which are the best combinations of these three sisters that work in our climate.
