The Three Sisters’ Garden

Corn, beans, and squash learn that they grow stronger together than apart—teaching children the power of working as a team.

Long before Europeans came to North America, the Haudenosaunee (ho-dee-no-SHOW-nee) people had a secret—three sisters who could not survive without each other.

Sister Corn grew tall and golden. She stood up straight and proud, reaching for the sun. But she was lonely and could not hold herself up in the wind. She fell over and cried.

Sister Bean grew lush and green, with tendrils that needed something to climb. But she had nothing to hold onto, and she sprawled on the ground, her leaves yellowing. She cried too.

Sister Squash spread wide, with enormous leaves that needed open ground. But the sun beat down and dried her leaves, and the weeds crept in. She cried.

Then Grandmother came and planted them together.

She planted Corn first, and Corn grew tall. She planted Bean beside her, and Bean climbed Corn’s stalk gratefully. She planted Squash around them both, and Squash spread her great leaves over the earth.

Now Corn was held up by Bean’s tendrils and Bean’s roots fixed nitrogen in the soil making all three stronger. Bean climbed without needing anything else. And Squash’s great leaves shaded the earth so weeds could not grow and the soil stayed cool and damp.

Three plants. Three problems. Together: one answer.

Grandmother sat back and watched her garden with satisfaction. “This is what I wanted you to understand,” she said to her grandchildren. “No one of you has everything you need. Together, you have exactly what each other needs.”

The Haudenosaunee called them the Three Sisters—not because they were related, but because they could not flourish apart.

Every spring, when the gardeners plant the three seeds together, they are remembering this: the strongest thing in the world is the right kind of partnership.