Hayesville in Clay County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)

Three Sisters Garden

Photographed by Mark Parker, May 10, 2025

1. Three Sisters Garden Marker

Inscription.
Three vegetables: corn, beans and squash, were referred to as the Three Sisters and are planted together on a small mound. The traditional Three Sisters Garden forms a community of plants, where corn, beans and squash benefit from a natural relationship. The corn provides the ladder for the beans to vine up, and the beans help replace nutrients the corn and squash take from the soil. The squash vines crowd out many weeds, keep erosion to a minimum and increase the amount of rain that soaks into the soil.

Many traditional farmers set fires to clear away the dead plants after the harvest to make way for a new crop, leaving nitrogen-rich ashes to help the soil. Through such methods Native Americans found it possible to get 15 years or more of continuous yields from the ground before its fertility was used up and new land had to be cleared.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Anthropology & Archaeology • Indigenous Peoples and Communities.

Location. 35° 2.663′ N, 83° 49.169′ W. Marker is in Hayesville, North Carolina,

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in Clay County. It is on Business U.S. 64 south of Davis Loop, on the right when traveling south. The marker is at the Cherokee Homestead Exhibit l. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 805 US-64 BUS, Hayesville NC 28904, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Carolina’s Mountains. It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Cherokee Summer House / Corn Cribs / Dugout Canoe (here, next to this marker); Cherokee Winter House (a few steps from this marker); Cherokee Culture (a few steps from this marker); Cherokee Communities of the Upper Hiwassee River Valley

Three Sisters Garden Marker in front of the corn crib at the Cherokee Homestead Exhibit image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, May 10, 2025

2. Three Sisters Garden Marker in front of the corn crib at the Cherokee Homestead Exhibit

(within shouting distance of this marker); Clay County Heritage (within shouting distance of this marker); Hayesville City Hall Rehabilitated As Small Classroom (within shouting distance of this marker); In Memory Our War Dead (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Fort Hembree (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hayesville.

Entrance to Cherokee Homestead Exhibit off US Business 64 image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, May 10, 2025

3. Entrance to Cherokee Homestead Exhibit off US Business 64

Credits. This page was last revised on May 13, 2025. It was originally submitted on May 12, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. This page has been viewed 124 times since then and 11 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 12, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.