Episode 15 of my podcast is now up, and can be found over on Podbean (or wherever you listen to podcasts!). This is the final part of my 3 part series on edible gardens. This week, it's all about sunflowers, the 3 sisters method of planting, and pasture plants!
For the first 10 minutes of the podcast, I discuss why you might be getting thin egg shells from your chickens. I cover things such as:
lack of calcium
time of year
age of hen
reproductive issues
Give it a listen!
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Sources:
The Bountiful Container, Rose Marie Nichols McGee & Maggie Stucky
100 Plants to Feed the Bees, The Xerces Society
'Pollinator plots in pastures enhance biodiversity, ecosystems services'
SUNFLOWERS
Start seeds indoors or direct sow
Full sun to partial shade (6+ hours of sun recommended)
Height: 36-72in
Harvest: late Summer to Fall
Spacing: plant 6-24in apart (depending on variety)
Days to bloom: 55-110
Moderately deer resistant
short/dwarf varieties are excellent for containers
Single stem varieties have one large flowering head
Branching varieties have multiple flowering heads
Pollinator friendly!
Seeds
Cover with 1/2in soil (seeds need darkness to sprout)
Will emerge within 3-5 days
Soil temp best at 75-85F
Grow quickly
Transplant when sprout is 3-5in tall (about 2-3 weeks from sowing)
Success with
Water at planting and twice more within the first 10 days (assuming no rain)
Support highly recommended!
For single stem varieties, leave minimum of 6in between plants
For branching varieties, allow 12-24in of space between plants
Harvesting
Harvest when blooms are beginning to open (they will continue to open inside)
Single stem flowers last approximately 10-14 days
Branching stem flowers last about 5-7 days
Some varieties to consider
‘Teddy Bear’: dwarf variety, grows to 24 inches in container and 36 inches in ground
‘Moulin Rouge’: aka ‘chocolate sunflower’; rich, red-orange petals, and produces black-oil sunflower seeds, beloved of all birds
‘Starburst Lemon Aura’: branching, lemon-yellow blooms
‘Woodland’ sunflower: suited to shady locations
Pollenless varieties
Some varieties of sunflowers are pollenless and even nectarless
The flowers last longer and are wonderful for a ‘cut flower’ garden
Downside is they’re of no use to pollinators
Look for ‘procut’ and ‘sunrich’ varieties
Pollinators!
Many and diverse!
Bees, wasps, flies, butterflies, and pollen-feeding soldier beetles
Nectar sugar concentration: 31-49%
The sunflower leafcutter bee is a visitor and may also use the dead, hollow stems as nesting sites
Host plant for caterpillars of the Silvery Checkerspot and Bordered Patch butterflies
THE 3 SISTERS METHOD
This is basically a way to grow corn, beans, and squash together. It’s a form of companion planting, where all three plants benefit the others in some way. This is also a traditional Native American method of gardening, and originated with the Haudenosaunee (pronounced: Ho-deh-no-shaw-nee) aka the Iroquois people, who live in the Great Lakes region of NE US and Canada. It is associated with a number of legends about three sisters who learn to overcome their differences by seeing how their disparate skills help them function effectively as a group. For instance, a Cherokee legend speaks of three women who helped each other stay fed, hydrated, and strong on the Trail of Tears. Another legend (I couldn’t find the tribe it is associated with, alas) talks of three sisters who always bickered, driving their mother crazy. One day, she took three eggs and cooked them in three different ways, before giving them to her daughters. She pointed out that, although the cooking method changed the texture of the egg, the egg itself was the same, and each one was delicious. This made the sisters see themselves and their siblings in a new light.
There are many other legends associated with the Three Sisters, and I recommend doing a Google search and giving them a read!
How do these 3 plants complement each other?
The beans climb the tall corn stalks, avoiding being out-competed by the sprawling squash. Beans also provide nitrogen to the soil. Rhizobia, a nitrogen-fixing bacteria, is hosted on the beans’ roots, allowing them to pull nitrogen from the air and distribute it into the soil for the other plants to benefit from.
The large leaves of the squash plants provide shade the ground, keeping it moist.
Traditionally, all 3 plant seeds were planted in large, elevated mounds that assist with drainage but there are many different configurations one can use in a Three Sisters garden. You can even plant in separate fields, allowing some overlap where each field meets.
A few key considerations:
The Three Sisters are warm season plants
They do not tolerate frost
Sow seeds directly when night temperatures are consistently above 50-55F
For SW states: corn does not tolerate high heat and low humidity well so consider planting before April 15th to harvest before the dry season, or in mid-late July for a Fall harvest.
Plant in order of corn, beans, squash
Corn first as you need the height of the corn stem to support the bean tendrils
Beans should be planted 2-3 weeks after the corn
Squash is best planted 1 week after the beans have emerged
When organizing your planting, consider your space: will each plant have enough room to grow optimally?
Consider pollination: Beans self-pollinate so you can have as little as one plant; squash needs insects so several plants will be needed; and corn is wind-pollinated so the more plants the better (10-20 is recommended as a minimum)
Corn varieties
All purpose dent corn (i.e. Dia de San Juan)
Tall popcorn (i.e. Flor del Rio)
Flint corn
Avoid dwarf/short varieties: although these are good water savers, you need the height of corn to support your bean plants
Bean varieties
Any pole bean (not bush beans)
Green beans
Wax beans
Runner beans
Lima
Pinto
Navy
Black turtle
Squash varieties
Winter squash
Pumpkins
Even watermelons and gourds will work!
Additional sister: sunflowers are a wonderful companion plant to a Three Sisters garden, and are sometimes named as an additional sister. They attract pollinators that benefit the corn and squash, and also provide shade during the heat of the day.
PASTURE PLANTS
What are pasture plants and why do we need them? Are they worth the work for a small homestead or garden? Are they just for farmers with large acreage?
Why?
Pasture plants are connected directly to grazing, placing them firmly in the interest of farmers. The kind of vegetation our livestock consumes during their lives directly effects their health and therefore the quality of their meat and/or milk. Many of the plants I’ll be discussing are nothing new to farmers who have been using them for generations. But pasture plants are increasingly the subject of further study as people are beginning to recognise just how beneficial they are to both our livestock and the larger ecosystem that surrounds our land.
I found a great article on the Green Publishing website that shared excerpts from the book ‘The Art of Science and Grazing’ by Sarah Flack. Here are two key quotes that sum up the importance of good pasture plants for grazing:
“When done well, grazing management can improve animal well-being, ecological health, and the financial sustainability of the farm.”
“As pastures improve, plant density and diversity increase, which protects soil from erosion and compaction. . . there is also increased plant root growth and better cycling of nutrients through the soil’.
Other benefits identified by Sarah Flack in her book:
Reduced reliance on supplement feed (i.e. grain)
Improved livestock health
Increased levels of healthy nutrients in meat and milk
Less exposure to pesticides and chemicals
Improved environmental and ecosystem health
Healthier soil
Higher forage quality
Less re-seeding
New market opportunities
Pollinators!
The answer as to why I am interested in pasture plants is simple: pollinators. These plants provide nectar and pollen as well as nesting sites for numerous native and nonnative pollinators that are essentially to our environment and food growth.
The University of Georgia’s Honey Bee Program website has some great information on bee pastures and how we can establish them. The purpose of bee pastures is to improve bee nutrition, and they have identified three types of forage areas:
1/ Single-year productive
Annual clovers, wildflowers, and ornamentals
Bloom for one forage season
Require re-seeding each year (November)
Easy to set up with inexpensive seed, simple plowing schedule, and little extra maintenance
Negatives: requires considerable acreage for full-season coverage, and easily stressed by high heat (such as in Southern states), which can cause up to 10 weeks of forage dearth
2/ Multi-year productive
Perennial blooming flowers, some woody vines, and bushes
Bloom lightly all season; lightly for a brief time; or lavishly for a brief time
More work and advance planning for successional bloom
Versatile
Negatives: most herbaceous perennials planted as grown seedlings so more expensive
3/ Permanent productive
Trees, bushes, a few woody perennials
Plantings can last over 30 years
Long term, provide most dependable source of pollens and nectars
Productivity will vary year to year
No plowing or weeding needed long term
Best for fruit and vegetable growers who want a large wild bee populations every year
Negatives: initially very expensive to establish
But bee pastures aren’t just for people with large acreage! Pasture plants will grow well in hedgerows and between your garden beds, encouraging pollinator activity, so even just a few of these plants can benefit your garden.
The following are plants that I identified as being more accessible (for those of us in the US) but is nowhere near exhaustive.
Quick terminology note! ‘Green Manure’ refers to plants that are plowed back into the soil to act as a fertilizer.
ALFALFA
Honey plant!
Full sun
Bloom season: Summer
Max height: 3ft
Flower colour: purple, yellow
Important fodder and forage legume
Depends on pollinators for seed production
Perennial and annual varieties
Supports an abundance of diverse pollinators
Prefers well drained soil
Nectar flows best following wet Spring (like here in NE Ohio!)
Average sugar concentration in nectar: 41-44%
Up to 300lbs of honey per hive when alfalfa fields stocked with 2 hives per acre
Pollen lacks the essential protein isoleucine, which is bad news for honey bees restricted to alfalfa as primary forage
Recommended variety:
Siberian Yellow (M.Falcata): cold tolerant, drought resistant, good for tough sites
Attracts:
Honey bees
Leaf cutter bees
Alkali bees
Host plant for:
Melissa Blue caterpillars
Orange Sulphur caterpillars
Clouded Sulphur carerpillars
Southern Dogface caterpillars
Eastern tail-blue caterpillars
Beneficial predatory and parasitic insects and mites (that function as biological pest control)
BUCKWHEAT
Honey plant!
Full sun
Blooms: summer
Flower colour: white
Max height: 4ft
Honey is pungent, dark, with a strong molasses flavour
Not technically a grain; actually related to rhubarb
Flowers prolifically in summer
Requires fertile, loose, moist soil, and cool weather for maximum nectar flow
Any of the above missing and nectar production declines by 50% or more
Honey crops thereby vary year by year
Average sugar concentration in nectar: 7-48%
Pollen protein at 10%, below minimum honey bee need of 20%
Recommended variety:
Numerous varieties available!
For nectar production, avoid shatter-resistant cultivars
Attracts:
Honey bees
Native bees
Butterflies
Wasps
Beneficial predatory and parasitic insects
CLOVER
Honey plant!
Full sun to partial shade
Bloom: late Spring to Summer
Flower colour: white, pink, red
Max height: 1ft
Honey is light and mild and very popular
Important fodder plant, cover crop, green manure, and also fixes nitrogen
Mostly intolerant of acidic soil and drought
Many species of clover lead to over 200lbs of surplus honey in optimal conditions
Average sugar concentration of nectar: 22-55%
Pollen protein levels are high (up to 25%), depending on species and location
Recommended varieties:
Almost all are excellent!
Plant different ones for best pollinator benefit
White Dutch Clover (trifolium repens) tolerates mowing so is a good option for lawns and orchards
Crimson Clover (T. Incarnatum) makes a beautiful, annual, cover crop
Alslike Clover (T. hybridum) is an excellent perennial that grows well in cooler climates, and tolerates wetter, more acidic soils
Red Clover (T. pratense) is a short lived perennial with deep nectaries that are good for bumble bees!
Attracts:
Wide variety of bees
Butterflies
wasps
Host plant for:
Gray Hairstreak caterpillars
Greenish Blue caterpillars
Shasta Blue caterpillars
Eastern tailed-blue caterpillars
Orange Sulphur caterpillars
Clouded Sulphur caterpillars
Queen Alexandra’s Sulphur caterpillars
Southern dog-face caterpillars
MUSTARD
Full sun
Blooms: Spring to Summer
Max height: 6ft
Flower colour: yellow
Most species annuals and biennal
Valuable cover, forage, row, and speciality crop
Generally low quality honey plants but pollen is high in fat (5%) and protein (25%)
Average sugar concentration of nectar: 50-51%
Recommended varieties:
Consult federal or state noxious weed info first
Field mustard/canola (Brassica rapa) attracts numerous bee species
Chinese mustard (B. juncea)
Black mustard (B. napas)
Host plant for:
Large Marble caterpillar
Large White caterpillar
Checkered White caterpillar
Becker’s White caterpillar
Pacific Orange Tip caterpillar
SWEETCLOVER
Considered one of the best nectar plants!
Full sun
Blooms: late Spring to Summer
Max height: 5ft
Flower colour: white, yellow
Weedy annual and biennial legumes
Very adaptable and easy to establish
Best on dry soil
Honey is white or ‘greenish yellow’ with hints of vanilla or cinnamon
Average of 200lbs surplus honey per hive
Average sugar concentration of nectar: 48-52%
Due to invasiveness concerns, the Xerces Society does not recommend planting near natural areas
Recommended varieties:
Yellow sweetclover (Melilotus officinalis) is the most readily available
‘Hubam’ is a variety of the white flowered species (M. alba); great honey plant for mass-planting, especially in warmer climates
White sweetclover nectar flow usually starts two weeks after the yellow varieties
Attracts:
Honey bees
Diversity of native bees
Beneficial insects
Butterflies
wasps
Host for:
Orange Sulphur caterpillars
Western Sulphur caterpillars
Eastern tailed-blue caterpillars
Reakirt’s Blue caterpillars
Silvery Blue caterpillars
VETCH
Full sun to partial shade
Blooms: Spring to Summer
Flower colour: purple, pink
Max height: 3ft
Valuable cover, fodder, forage, and green manure crop
Closely related to lentils and peas
Reduces erosion
Nitrogen fixation
“Recent research shows that vetch can also remove pollutants from soils and may be used for phytoremediation.” Xerces Society
Grows aggressively and can become weedy or invasive in some areas so does require watching/management
Yields a mild, white honey
Some flowers so deep that the nectar might be inaccessible to honey bees (but not longer tongued species such as bumbles)
Recommended varieties:
American Vetch (Vicia americana) is a native perennial
Hairy/winter vetch (V. villosa), a non-native annual
Common Vetch (V. sativa) is an annual that has extrafloral nectaries, which support predatory and parasitical insects that prey on crop pests
Avoid the invasive Crownvetch (Securigera varia)
Attracts:
Many different bees!
Honey bees
Bumble bees
Leafcutters
Mining bees
Longhorn bees
Host for:
Mexican Cloudywing caterpillars
Funereal Duskywing caterpillars
Western Sulphur caterpillars
Silvery Blue caterpillars
Western tail-blue caterpillars
Eastern tail-blue caterpillars
And that's it for this week! Thanks so much for reading and/or listening. Feel free to leave me a comment or email me at homesteadhensandhoney@gmail.com as I love to hear from you! You can also find me at Homesteadhensandhoney on Instagram and Facebook; and HomesteadHens on Tumblr and Twitter.
With all this coronovirus madness, please stay safe. Stay home as much as possible, maintain a 6ft distance from others, wash your hands regularly, keep some hand sanitizer on your person for when you're out and about, and call your doctor immediately if you display any of the symptoms. Also, please don't buy more than you need for groceries and essentials. We can only get through this together as a community.
As always, my friends, hug your hens and then wash your darn hands! Cheers!