Corn and Beans

I'm sure there are plenty of cultures that rely primarily on two staple crops, but coming from the United States where sometimes the options are overwhelming I hadn't ever considered it before. El Salvador, just as most Central American countries, relies heavily on corn and beans for sustenance. With more importing things have changed a little bit and now people here have other options like pasta (wheat is not something they grow here). However, in rural areas it is still common for a family to rely almost completely on their own crops.

I have had the opportunity to check out the corn and bean cultivating cycle this year and will hopefully observe through the end of the growing season. My most recent visit to the cornfield found the corn taller than me with young ears and the beans with quite developed pods. This bean crop is the first bean crop and the second (and principal) crop will be planted when the corn reaches full size and they bend the stalk to allow the corn to dry. The bent stalks serve as supports for the beans (rather than the sticks that we manually staked next to each bean plant).

Seeing the fields from a distance makes the amount of corn they are growing seem pretty minimal since I am observing all of the land also not occupied by growing corn. However, when I am in the midst of the corn fields it is an amazing quantity of corn that each family is growing. And thinking about the fact that they are growing enough corn for their entire family for an entire year is overwhelming. Processing an issue like individual food security is quite interesting and this country provides plenty of opportunities to do so.

(a partial shot of the corn field of a different family)

(a developing ear)

(a green bean and bud - this is not the main red bean that they rely on, though many families grow a few vines as well)

(snack time after hard work in the corn field - Angel and Felipe with their mouths full)