This year, I decided to try what is called a "Three Sisters Garden". It was a planting method used by Native Americans that was what people now call companion planting. The story passed on throughout generations of Native Americans is about three sisters, corn, beans, and squash. These three sisters care about each other very much and when together, strengthen and help one another as they grow. These were also three staple crops of the Native Americans that were essential for their survival. Corn was a mainstay that could be eaten "green" or dried for storage and provided carbohydrates for them, beans provided protein for them and could also be eaten right off the plant or dried for storage, and squash provided many extra vitamins and minerals. The three together provided a well balanced and life sustaining diet for them, that could be stored to get them through the winter months. These three plants, when planted together, are found to benefit each other in their growth. The corn provides a natural structure for the pole beans to climb. The beans help the corn by providing extra support to the corn stalks to prevent wind damage, and they also are found to add nitrogen to the soil that the corn naturally depletes. The squash provides a living mulch for both the beans and the corn, it inhibits weed growth and shades the soil to retain water better in dry times. So, not only were these "Three Sisters" important to the people's diet, they were important to each others growth.
I knew that I wanted to do this type of garden, but did not plan as well as I should have, so this year is a bit of an experiment to see how it does. After doing our "Lasagna Garden", we were hit with rainy and wet conditions, great for the lasagna garden, but the wet ground kept me from preparing the mounds for the "Three Sisters". I had originally wanted to order some flint or field corn to plant, but it was already late may, and all the local stores only sold packets of sweet corn. So, I went with sweet corn instead. Which is fine, because I love to eat fresh corn, but I had planned on drying some of it to use as a supplement to chicken feed this winter. Sweet corn does not dry all that well, so I plan on just freezing any extra, and occasionally thawing and giving the chickens some ears as a treat this winter. So at the end of May, the ground dried out enough for me to form about five mounds in the space left over next to my winter wheat. I planted several seeds in a circular pattern in each mound. 
As soon as these spouted, I planted my pole beans. I put three to four seeds around each of the sprouted corn. Again, I had originally wanted to plant a good bean that I could not only eat, but that I could dry to add to the chicken's feed. However, due to easy availability, I just went with a Kentucky Wonder green bean. The family loves green beans, and we could can any extra to eat later or feed to the chickens. I went with pumpkins for the squash, mainly because I had an old pack of pumpkin seeds. I now wish I would have gotten a new pack because only around seven of them sprouted. One mound did not have any pumpkins sprout, but I think I can direct the runners from one mound to the other. The pumpkins were planted on the edge of the mounds and I will keep the runners directed into the mound to provide that living mulch. My plan is to have some jack-o-lanterns for the kids this Halloween and to dry the seeds to eat and again, give to the chickens.
At this time everything is growing, but not very impressive yet, I will post more pictures and update this post as things progress.
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