Planting between sweetcorn

[AdamB1978]

Hello

I am very new to growing veg - this is my first year (and this is my second thread on this site!).

I have a question for knowledgeable people (so everyone). Am growing a wide variety of things in the greenhouse and outside, and in one of our raised veg plots I've planted sweetcorn in a large part of it. The plants are in rows of 5 and I have three rows, however because I observed the distances between plants and rows which was recommended, there's quite a lot of unused space....and given I've now filled veg plots and greenhouse, I was wondering whether there were things which I could plant between the sweetcorn plants.

The sweetcorn are about 2 feet tall, though quite ragged. I was wondering whether there would block out too much sunlight to plant something else - I was thinking of planting either lettuce or parsnips. I thought I might be able to get away with it as the sweetcorn aren't bushy (yet) however would like to hear views from people who know more.

All advice / comments very welcome!
Thanks

Adam

[muddled]

your sweetcorn won't actually get bushy, one or possibly two stems per plant...straight as a pole.

So yes, plant away!
Parsnip though, won't really work. They are likely to be ruined as you harvest your corn a good few months before them.

Lettuce will be fine, as would courgettes, beans of any description, peas, spinach, and funnily enough, anything that IS bushy!
In fact, I would say that you really should use that space. The other plants will shade the roots of your corn (which sometimes heave themselves up proud of the surface) and keep everything damp and cool.

[Bill Door]

Hi Adam and welcome.

"The three sisters" is what you are looking for. Runner beans and squash are the other sisters. I don't know if it is too late but you could try germinating runner beans and squash in a dark cupboard and the planting them out between the sweetcorn. The squash grow on the ground a swirl around the base of the sweetcorn and the runner beans just climb up them.

You can probably "do" one bean per sweetcorn plant but limit the squash to one every 2 feet each way.

Hope this helps and enjoy your gardening.

Bill

P.S plenty of manure as a mulch will help

[Llevrah]

I was looking at my runner bean packet today to check the planting out space in between and mine can be done till July. They are prizewinner. Absolutely no idea if it's all runners or just these ones though so not much help

[Baldy]

I've struggled with 3 sisters here - though some manage ok - I guess that in the America's (whre 3 sisters was used by native tribes to maximise harvest) there was stronger/longer sunlight. Anyhow - I've had more luck with lettuce - but your mileage may vary. Either way its certainly worth trying to grow something in that space.

Bladders

[SaraJH]

I'd get some quick crops in the space, radish and lettuce.

One thing I have learned this year is to ignore the spacing on the packets, they are all designed for old world allotment rows, try square foot gardening and you will be amazed at the number of crops you can get in a small space.

[SaraJH]

I've struggled with 3 sisters here - though some manage ok - I guess that in the America's (whre 3 sisters was used by native tribes to maximise harvest) there was stronger/longer sunlight. Anyhow - I've had more luck with lettuce - but your mileage may vary. Either way its certainly worth trying to grow something in that space.

Bladders

YMMV is not an expression I ever thought I would read on a gardening forum!

[sparrow100]

3 sisters was started for flint corn, drying beans and winter squash - so everything was harvested at the end of the season. I don't think it's meant for runners or sweetcorn, where you need to get into the bed and harvest during the season. Plus corn grows a bit taller in their hotter seasons.

2 sisters works really well for me tho - I have squashes which should be romping through by now, but instead are being a bit feeble thanks to the weather.

[happyhumph]

What everyone has said above really. I regularly grow tall growing plants above squashes, & quick growing crops such as radish, lettuce, turnip greens rocket, etc would fit in fine. Things for use later in the season such as winter spinach, lambs lettuce etc. I also ignore a lot of the spacing guidelines. If you look after your soil - plenty of well rotted organic matter (compost, leaf mold, manure etc ) you'll be amazed what you can get out of a small space. Ooh - strawberries, that's a thought....

[rollingrock]

Baldy the sunlight is not issue with three sisters since it was grown as far south as southern Mexico and as far north as part of southern Canada.
the import part of three sister is the types of each crops grown.

the three sisters can easily be down in UK but you need understand that the three sister was used on squash,beans and corn for drying. to use sweetcorn,summer squash and french beans you need use different spacing then the traditional three sister and use bush varieties of french beans and bush varieties of squash and plant in wide row no great then 4 ft or you will not be able to harvest the beans,squash corn when it ripe

you could also inter-plant the corn with beet root, leaf beet, spinach other shallow rooted leaf or root crop.

[Farmer_Gyles]

I normally grow a big block of sweetcorn and various slow-growing squashes in the middle - nothing I'll want to harvest until after the sweetcorn is finished. I have tried beans growing up the sweetcorn around the sides of the block, but you need a very early sweetcorn and good weather for the sweetcorn to put on some height before sowing beans.

This year I have a smaller block of minipop sweetcorn with 3 pumpkin plants inside the block. I have a butternut squash to plant in there too. Everything seems slow and late this year and the sweetcorn is still very very small - probably won't get time to grow beans ....

[SusieG]

3 sisters was started for flint corn, drying beans and winter squash - so everything was harvested at the end of the season. I don't think it's meant for runners or sweetcorn, where you need to get into the bed and harvest during the season. Plus corn grows a bit taller in their hotter seasons.

2 sisters works really well for me tho - I have squashes which should be romping through by now, but instead are being a bit feeble thanks to the weather.

I have a courgette plant in quite a smallish pot, really, in GH and its threatening to take over ..... Could that be planted somewhere strategic between my sweetcorn..? (Which incidentally is STILL only approx 6" high, although looks healthy enough, I think ..... )

[GBax]

Watched an interesting video on you tube suggesting growing a green manure underneath. Think i might give it a go on half of my block this year

[Elfeda]

I scattered some fenugreek seeds in all empty spaces like sweetcorn. but it seems weed seeds germinated before the fenugreek. tip is I should get fenugreek germiated before weeds in any