Henny Penny Farmette

What kind of bean crop will perform in a garden during drought and in less-than-desirable soil? Try tepary beans (one of the Three Sisters of Native American tradition—squash, corn, and beans). See images of tepary beans at: http://shop.nativeseeds.org/collections/tepary-beans

Phaseolus vulgaris–common beans

There is precedent: Native American tribes of the desert Southwest cultivated food crops in dry and often nutrient-deficient soil. They used companion plantings of squash, corn, and the drought-resistant tepary bean (Phaseolus acutifolius) in mounds along with dead fish for extra nitrogen.

Tepary beans are among the most drought-resistant beans in the world; they are not descended from the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). They contain higher amounts of protein than the common bean and come in a variety of colors, including white, tan, butternut gold, black, and even speckled.

Pour a tea of fish emulsion mixed with water to give your tepary beans a little boost of nitrogen to help them take off if you’re planting them in nutrient deficient garden soil.

Of course, having bees around to pollinate your Three Sisters plants is a plus. The Tewa and other tribes of the desert southwest referred to the Rocky Mountain bee plant (Cleome serrulata) as the Fourth Sister because the plant attracts bees.

Novel #1 in the Henny Penny Farmette series of mysteries

If you enjoy reading about gardening, keeping bees, raising chickens, creating delicious recipes with a bit of murder along the way, check out my cozy mystery offerings from Kensington Publishing, available online and in tradition bookstores everywhere in hardcover, kindle, and mass market paperback. See, http://tinyurl.com/gnnqr8z

Novel #2,  Henny Penny Farmette series

The Murder of a Queen bee will be released September 29, 2016 in hardcover and kindle formats. See, http://tinyurl.com/j9vh7vr

Check out Hobby Reads.com’s “How to Make a Lavender-Sage Smudging Stick.” See, http://tinyurl.com/jds38e8