As I said in previous posts I wanted to do the Three Sisters method this year. I have prepared for this a bed that is 3m x 2 m, that has been well manured. Now my question is concerning the number of plants. I have in pots waiting 3 Jap pumpkins, 3 Qld Blue pumpkins and also I have about 5 or 6 melon plants. This is next to a path so things can run onto the path is need be.
Now can I plant all this squash and melons in a bed that size?
If not, could I plant the melons at the feet of my tomato plants, if I have also heavily manured and composted that bed? Again that is next to a path so the melons could run down on the path if necessary. I was planning on growing the tomatoes through black plastic this year (an exhaustion avoidance technique) and hope that this would not be a disadvantage for teh melons, that would sit on top of the plastic (although they could be straw mulched over the plastic too.).
Take into account the fact that half of my plants usually die so I am allowing for some fall-out.
What would you advise??
I tried this method last year and I had a bed about 8ft square. I grew 16 corn with 2 cherokee trail to each one and had 3 butternut squash growing from the centre. The corn and the beans did really well although I did use 8ft canes to help support them. The squash didin't do so well but they did keep the moisture in the ground cos I wound them round and round. let us know how you get on with yours
You have some pretty hefty squash plants there. I grew 10 plants in two 1.2m by 9m beds last year, so planted about 1.3 m apart, and they still wandered all over the place. So much so I had difficulty walking the paths along each bed. I would therefore say that if you are also planting corn and beans in the same bed you won't get all the squash and the melons in as well.
Both melons and tomatoes are heavy feeders so you will need to make sure that you give both enough food if you plant together (seaweed meal is good as lots of trace elements as well). My experience with melons (and you have a much hotter climate I would have thought) is that they adore being on black plastic because of the extra heat.
I find that winter squash will grow just about anywhere (have heavy clay soil) and I don't bother putting extra mounds of muck in for them, nor do they get watered after they're established. Have grown winter squash at the base of sweetcorn, in and along ditches, any odd corner.
Melons seem to do better planted into mounds of well mucked soil, planted through slits in black plastic on top of the soil, and sheltered with some sort of frame round, but in full sun. Wouldn't personally bother straw mulching as well.
Apart from horse muck, I don't feed any veg including tomatoes, the clay soil has enough nutrients.
if a winter squash were to be grown up a fence is there any way of making sure it fruits on your side of the fence?
littlebabybird, i guess it depends on what the fence is made of! If it is wire with holes in it surely you could just move the fruit onto your side as it starts to form? Some people put squash in old tights to support them when growing vertically.
SO I take it from what people say is that the melons will have to go separately but that I can plant them at the feet of the tomatoes as long as I feed them enough??