3 Sisters Companion Planting

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ShelleyF Custer, WI Mar 09, 2016

I've been planning my vegetable garden for this year and decided I'd like to try the 3 Sisters companion planting of corn, beans and squash. I did some research and usually they say to plant your corn, wait until it's about 5-6 inches tall, then plant your pole beans, then a week later plant squash. Since I live in Wisconsin I know squash usually has a very long growing season so I am wondering if it would be wise to plant it last. Has anyone in the midwest, preferably in Wisconsin, tried the 3 sisters method, and if so how did it turn out? Thanks!

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kittriana Magnolia, TX(Zone 9a) Mar 17, 2016

They use several versions of 3sisters as far north as Canada- I've seen some gardens that impressed me a lot by the Hurons up there. Pole beans can pull corn down if the corn doesnt have some growth on it, but basically the idea is they are planted together to help the nutrients- so you can honor the system but use pole bean supports instead of the corn as supports. When you plant your squash or pumpkins depends on your window- again the system is to support nutrients within each plants ability- so plant when you need to. I like the plots I have seen that look more like a starfish design as the 3 sisters layout.

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ShelleyF Custer, WI Mar 18, 2016

Thank you, Kittriana. I'll have to check into the "starfish" design.

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kittriana Magnolia, TX(Zone 9a) Mar 20, 2016

Since I seem to have lost the video I spotted the design on...IF you have the spaces - this is somewhat how it looked. It allowed access to the beans, squashes to shade the weeds out, and beans can grow up the sunflowers as well providing nitrogen to the other plants- all done as if a tree with taller plants to middle

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