Spray Plantation, Near the St. Mary's River, Maryland, l661

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The Corn Patch

Beyond the barn is the corn patch. Corn, beans, and pumpkins or squash are planted in hills together. Bean plants climb on the corn stalks. The large leaves of the squash and pumpkin plants cover the ground and conserve scarce water for the corn and beans. The roots of the beans provide important nutrients for the corn, squash, and pumpkins. The colonists learned how to plant and prepare these crops from the Yaocomaco Indians who lived in the region when the first English colonists arrived.

The corn is ready to harvest in September. The green leaves are bean plants climbing on the corn stalks.     Corn is the main food crop. Only one or two ears grow on a plant.

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Sue Freienmuth for Montgomery County Public Schools, MD, Oct. 25, 2000