Quick look: Three Sisters Garden

I want to take a minute to talk about the three sisters garden. Not just mine, but in general. The three sisters are probably the most famous companion planting combination, in North America at least.  They consist of a tall variety of cobb corn, a climbing pole beans, and squash. They can vary between different varieties of each based on what you need, but these are the three main crops you will need.

Historically,  these three crops were very important to the indigenous people of North America.  All three crops could be dried to provide food all winter and they create a complete diet with carbs, proteins, and vitamins. But the way they interact with each other is what I was most interested in for my purposes.

The thing I find so interesting is that the plants utilize the space the others don't. The corn grows tall but isn't busy. The beans use the corn to climb so they can get more sun and airflow. The squash fills the space below along the ground. But that's not all!

If you haven't tried fried squash blossoms, you're missing out!

Corn has very shallow roots for such a tall plant, and can easily be knocked over by wind. The additional strength of the beans can help support them like guy-wires on a tower. The squash not only helps block weed growth, but also keeps the soil cool, which allows it to hold more moisture. 

 

As a bonus, I added a few cabbages to the outside of the crops, as well as some mache (also known as corn salad) which is a tender green that grows well under corn.

Quick Look: Mushroom update

We've spent the winter practicing our mushroom cultivation techniques and have recently expanded the species we are growing. In this quick look, we'll just be listing all the cultures we currently have on hand.

Grey Oyster

Gold Oyster

Winecap

Maitake

Chicken of the Woods

Lions Mane

Wood Blewit

Pink Oyster

All varieties we grow are considered "Gourmet" in that they are intended to be consumed for food purposes. Some of them also have medicinal purposes such as immuno-support and improving cognitive functions. 

Future posts will focus on cultivation of specific varieties and in-depth looks into their benefits and uses.

Quick Look: Potted outdoor plants in the winter.

Sometimes you can't bring all of your potted plants inside for the winter. Many endemic plants, meaning they grow naturally in your region, need to experience the seasons for themselves. Perhaps dormancy is required for new growth on some, or others need to be cold stratified to produce fruit. 

Whatever the reason,  they stay out in the cold. However, being in pots puts their roots at more risk to cold than if they were in the ground. The plant can be adapted to the cold, but the roots are used to being in the somewhat insulated dirt.

The easiest way to ensure a safe winter is to mulch around the pot. You've probably seen tree nurseries bury their pots in mulch above grade. This works great if you have the mulch!

What I like to do is to is stick my pots in the ground where I'm building a new raised bed. I often use yard waste in the fall to prep my spring beds, and this ends up being a great spot to stash my pots for the spring as well!

Below are a few pics of pots I have in one of my new beds. I have an outdoor bonsai Cyprus, several sapling maples and birch trees, raspberry propagations, and strawberries I didn't get into the ground yet. This is also a good option for late-season clearance shrubs from DIY centers that you can't get planted on time, as well as your potted herbs!

Quick Look: Winter Rosemary

This is my first quick look, a short post that I just want to share so that others may benefit from what we do at Third-Acre. 

This is my outdoor rosemary shrub. It's three years old and started as one of those live herb plants you can get in the produce section of many grocery stores. 

For years I've planted rosemary in the garden for culinary use, aesthetic appearance, and pest control, but I've always grown it as an annual. Here in Michigan, it dies in the winter; I thought that was the norm. Then I took a trip down south where it is planted as perennial hedges and border shrubs. 

I found out that it isn't necessarily the cold that kills it, but the snow blocking out the sun. Here's my method of overwintering it outdoors.

First I drop the pot into my window well.

This keeps it close to the house where it can benefit from less intense temperature shifts and harsh winds.

Then I place an egress cover over it.

Boom! Instant personal greenhouse! Now it gets a bit of sun all winter and the snow won't crush it!

If you have it planted in the ground, grab two of these well covers and connect them back to back for a similar effect!