The milpa system of growth

Maya elders have a great teaching about the Milpa. Milpa is the system of growing corn, beans, squash, chilies and other plants together in raised beds. This system works because of special relationships between the plants. The beans replace nitrogen from the air that corn consumes from the earth. The corn provides a vertical platform for the beans to rise up above the crowd to get access to the nitrogen. The squash grow out around the trunks and keep unwanted competition from growing up around the stalks, keep the soil moist and prevent erosion. Flowers attract important insects that play a complementary role in the relationship. Together, they form a very sustainable environment that provides all the essential elements human’s need to survive.

This system also highlights the magic of the saying that small is beautiful. Each part of this complicated system has a basic function that benefits the greater good. This is contrasted with a large mono cropped cornfield that depends on complicated chemical intervention, abstract marketing systems and specialized labor.