By Sally High and Rose Chavez | Geothermal Greenhouse Partnership
The Geothermal Greenhouse Partnership (GGP) will host a harvest party on Nov. 11 from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association Clubhouse.
Live music, prize-winning photography and great food highlight the celebration of the Three Sisters — corn and beans and squash.
The term “Three Sisters” refers to these three plants, grown together for thousands of years. Indigenous peoples cultivated the Three Sisters across the North American continent. Here in the Four Corners, successful varieties were selected through countless generations of pre-Colombian farming. European newcomers quickly recognized that the Three Sisters are easy to grow in the short-season high desert.
Today we call it companion planting. Corn, beans and squash produce good yields when grown together. They provide the basis for a healthy diet with protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and other nutrients. They can be dried and stored for use over the winter or in lean years to come. Some of today’s most successful seeds have been found through archaeological pursuits in the Four Corners. Red and white pinto beans are a perfect example.
You are invited to share your favorite recipes that feature corn or beans or squash or a combination of these native plants. Pumpkins are squash. Whether you have a new recipe you want to try or a treasured family recipe from generations past, you are encouraged to celebrate the Three Sisters with the GGP community.
Guests will bring favorite dishes for others to taste. All guests will enjoy a taste of the array of dishes. Expert tasters will award prizes for favorite dishes in a variety of imaginative categories.
The GGP will serve a savory succotash stew with a green salad and sweet pumpkin cookies and muffins. All guests share this feast and share ideas and recipes.
There will also be non-GMO blue corn meal for sale, as well as brews sourced from Indigenous plants.
Each guest will receive one drink ticket for a choice of beverage. Three Sisters at Your Thanksgiving Table is a family-friendly event.
Live music will be provided by local favorites Brooks-I and Cuatro Cruz. The amazing Pagosa Photography Club will lead the photography exhibit, although photographs from all amateur and professional photographers are welcome. Contact ggp@pagosagreen.org to donate a photograph to benefit the GGP or to volunteer for this event.
The GGP is a homegrown grassroots educational 501(c)(3). The volunteer- and donation-driven nonprofit organization operates three dome greenhouses in Centennial Park. Weminuche Audubon’s Native Plants Garden and the Rotary Club’s Xeric Garden share the GGP site. The GGP is truly a partnership.
Proceeds from Three Sisters at Your Thanksgiving Table benefit GGP and its ongoing community-service operations. Tickets can be purchased at www.pagosagreen.org and donations can always be made at www.coloradogives.org/geothermalgreenhousepartnership.
Cooks who bring a dish to share will be admitted at no cost. A regular ticket is $50 for adult guests. Seniors and veterans are $20. Children between 5 and 12 years old are $10 and teens are $20. Tickets for youngsters under 5 years old are free. GGP supporters can sponsor a veteran, for this Veterans Day event, by purchasing a veteran’s ticket at www.pagosagreen.org.
