The Three Sisters Crops and Seed Varieties

‘Dakota Black’ popcorn Corn(6)

• Maroon-black kernels on 4-1/2-inch ears; 1 ear per stalk; 6-foot-tall plants; 90 days to maturity
• Yields larger puffs of popped corn than the ‘Cherokee’ variety does, but has a similar nutty flavor

‘Hopi Sweet’ or ‘Tawaktchi’ Corn (4)

• Small ears with white kernels; 100 days to maturity
• Sweet corn that’s commonly dry-roasted at the milk stage and then stored for later use (a food-preparation technique of the Pennsylvania Dutch that was acquired from Native Americans); can be eaten like typical sweet corn, but is so tender you can eat it raw; also used as a dry corn in savory pies or stuffings, or stewed with poultry

‘Mountain Pima’ Corn (4)

• Small ears with yellow and, on occasion, red kernels; 100 days to maturity
• A Southwestern sweet corn that can be used like ‘Hopi Sweet’;  good for creamed corn and corn soup

‘Puhwem’ Corn (3)

• White kernels on extremely long ears; a towering variety that reaches 16 to 18 feet with raccoon-proof ears high up on the stalks; not well-adapted to the Three Sisters planting scheme; known as “mother corn”; from the Delaware Nation
• Used as a dry corn and is one of the best Native American corns for making corn flour; exceptionally flavorful; great for dumplings, Johnny cakes and cornmeal pound cakes;  can be used in cake and bread recipes (consider blending with wheat flour); a rich nuttiness comes through even in grits made from this corn; starchy, so grits cook quickly and thicken up with a soft, porridge-like consistency

‘Shawnee Flour Corn’ (1)

• Eight- to 10-inch ears with white kernels; plants reach about 10 feet in height; grown by the Shawnee
• Somewhat grittier than ‘Puhwem’ flour corn, but the flavor is about the same; good for hominy

‘Tutelo Strawberry’ Corn (3)

• Five to 6 feet in height with one or two cobs low on the stalks; ideal for Three Sisters if planted with short pole or semi-pole beans; when planted in hills, it will sucker and send out side shoots, some of which will produce additional ears; 115 to 130 days to maturity; originated in Virginia and western Maryland; a variety that was preserved by the Cornplanter Senecas of Northwestern Pennsylvania
• Used for grits, mush and hominy; the unique, deep rose color of this corn is preserved in the meal and grits, and turns out a wonderfully pink polenta; has a slightly sweet taste similar to that of maple syrup, so it works well as a “dessert” corn

‘Virginia White Gourdseed’ Corn (6)

• White, flat kernels; known among the Iroquois as “tooth corn” because of the kernel shape; 125 days to maturity; one of several truly ancient Native American corns surviving from the Eastern Woodlands
• Whole kernels look like large, flat seeds, and this appearance can be used to advantage in stews, stuffings and baked dishes; makes excellent hominy and grits; hint of almond or walnut flavor

Bean Varieties

‘Arikara Dry Yellow’ Beans (7)

• Bushy, drought-resistant; small, yellow beans; a primary food crop for the Mandan and the Arikara tribes of the Missouri Valley
• A bean at its best dry; has a light color and smooth consistency if puréed, so is ideal for soups and stews; subtle flavor goes well with poultry

‘Cherokee Trail of Tears’ Beans (1, 2)

• Drought-resistant; heavy producer; black beans grow in pods that ripen red to violet; taken to Oklahoma by the Cherokee during their forced migration in the 1830s
• Used as a dry bean; works well for refried beans or paired with cornbread; has a heavy bean flavor that can be controlled with a little bit of red wine vinegar

‘Genuine Cornfield’ or ‘Scotia’ Beans (1)

• A true corn hill bean; grown by the Iroquois
• Can be used like any Mexican pinto bean; turns creamy as a baked bean, which makes it excellent for cassoulet-type dishes; good with duck

‘Indian Hannah’ Beans (1)

• Tan seed with brown markings; ideal to grow with a short corn; a Delaware/Lenape variety of “wampum bean” preserved by Hannah Freeman, the last of her tribe in Chester County, Pa.
• Young, tender pods make good snap beans, while the large green seeds make good shelly beans; can replace pinto beans as a dry bean; mild flavor; makes excellent bean flour for adding to breads or grits

‘Mayflower’ or ‘Amish Nuttle’ Beans (2)

• A semi-pole variety; small, speckled beans; grown among the Iroquois
• Used as a dry bean; a small-seeded variety that’s good combined with other vegetables, especially in  soups and stews; excellent mixed with wild rice; flavor is similar to that of cowpeas

‘Ohio Pole Bean’ Beans (1)

• Prolific variety; robust vines about 8 feet in length; 8-inch pods; best adapted to grow on tall corn varieties or, better yet, sunflowers; beans have purple speckles on one end
• This large, fat dry bean is good for baking; has a meaty flavor that goes well with game or red meats

‘True Red Cranberry’ Beans (1)

• Unique, round red beans; a New England variety
• A classic for baked beans; keeps its shape well when baked; used either as a shelling bean or as a dry bean; texture is dense and meaty; works well with smoked meats

‘Wild Pigeon’ Beans (1)

• A semi-pole, cut-short variety; best grown on short corn; produces tiny beans; grown by the Iroquois
• Good for soups, stews or stuffings; nutty flavor reminiscent of hickory nuts; can be ground for flour and added to grits or mush to impart an interesting background flavor; goes well with morels and other wild mushrooms

Squash Varieties

‘Arikara’ Squash (Cucurbita maxima) (5)

• Oblong in shape; off-white with faint, flesh-colored stripes or speckles; a North Dakota squash.
• Good for winter storage; generally used for soup, as it makes a nice, thick purée; also valued for its squash blossoms, which can be used in cookery fresh or dried

‘Mandan’ Squash (Cucurbita pepo) (5)

• Early, insect-tolerant variety that is more generally available than most Native American squash; small, round, flattish squash that’s cream-colored with green stripes; developed by the Mandan peoples in North Dakota; one of the first Native American squash acquired by noted seedsman Oscar Will
• A summer squash best if eaten young and soft, at which point it has a slight nutty flavor; can also be stored for fall and winter use; stored squash can be cut to create a “lid,” emptied of seeds, and then splashed inside with a bit of sunflower oil, a few pieces of dried fruit, and, best of all, a few spoonfulls of fresh pawpaw, which will caramelize the interior (if you cook the squash this way, close lid and place in bowl with a bit of water; cover and bake)

‘Menominee’ Squash (Cucurbita pepo)

(check Seed Savers Exchange)

• Small, top-shaped squash that ripens dark green with lighter green stripes; the name of this squash (which is also the name of a Native American  nation in Wisconsin) means “Wild Rice People”
• Can be eaten young, at which point it resembles zucchini; if fully ripe and hard, it can be stored for winter as a source of seeds; try cooking the seeds with wild rice or baking the young squash with a wild rice stuffing

Key to Native American Seed Sources