Four Sisters

The Four Sisters (Gundiagh: Kiare Shuyraghyn) program was an initiative spearheaded by the Lathadun government and the Farmer's Guild to promote the increased cultivation and consumption of fruits and vegetables (namely citrus, figs, apricots, and persimmons) in the face of malnutrition brought on by the rapid urbanization and industrialization seen in Lathadu in the first half of the 20th century CE. Although many other fruits and vegetables were featured in the program, the "four sisters" as they were called were considered the face of the push. The program was designed to begin to see dividends by the third or fourth year of its existence, and resulted in fresh fruit and other produce once again becoming available to a majority of Lathadu's population.

History
Citrus, figs, apricots, and persimmons (Gundiagh: sharreyveen, raahag, ooylleah, daaihooyl) and have a long history of cultivation in East Alutra, going back to at least the second millennium before the common era. Due to their ubiquity in the region and their successive fruiting seasons, the fruits first became known as the "Kiare Shuyraghyn" (Four Sisters) by those living in what is now Lathadu sometime in the second century BCE. Much art exists historically depicting these four symbolic sisters, often tying them to the respective seasonal Lú in Ayekist cosmology. Due to this association, many Gundiagh-speakers use "-of the fig" to signify Orthopraxical (also called Summer Cycle) Ayekist thought.

Widespread cultivation of these hardy fruits in many areas eased the damage dealt by the Famine in 1791. By the time of the Silent Years and Lathadun Revolution in the latter half of the 19th century, each of the "Four Sisters" were ubiquitous across the nation. Destruction wreaked by the conflict and constant "requisitioning" of foodstuffs by loyalist forces depleted many of their typical provisions. Whether the fruits were dried, pickled, jellied, fermented, or distilled, they found their way into Lathadun cuisine in a wide variety of ways.

Background
One of the primary aftermaths of the Lathadun Revolution following the establishment of the Republic of Lathadu was the rapid industrialization which occurred along the banks of the Aarnieu River, particularly in the space between the cities of Calleebane and Ushteyghoo. The push to modernize the nation's infrastructure from the newly-established National Federation of Trade Guilds (NFTG) prompted the Lathadun government to carry out extensive public works projects, resulting in the construction of several miles of levees and consequently the reclamation of a great deal of land around the Aarnieu. These changes made the Aarnieu much more navigable for ships other than flat-bottomed boats, and increased traffic several-fold. With increased traffic came increased industry, and soon textile mills and sugar plants cropped up along the newly-reclaimed land.

With new industries came new towns, and soon Lathaduns (particularly young men) from across the country moved en masse in search of opportunity. These new workers' towns were often hastily constructed and not entirely-planned in their layout; in some instances, it was only through direct intervention from the respective guild which prevented disaster. However, one disaster which moved more slowly than other potential issues was that of nutrition. The diet of the new Lathadun worker in these towns consisted primarily of cheap and easy to store foods, such as salt pork or beef, hard biscuits made of wheat and maizemeal, and potatoes. While these meals were often filling, they were only rarely broken up by the occasional serving of canned vegetables or fruit, themselves often mushy and tasting poorly, leading to their being discarded.

By 1890, the Lathadun government and NFTG had become acutely aware of the level of malnutrition seen in its workers. Conditions such as or even  had begun to become prevalent, and the issue threatened to grow into a full-blown crisis. In response to this issue, newly-elected Premier Fergus Cain reached out to the Farmer's Guild within the NFTG to work out a solution. Leadership within the NFTG correctly surmised that the issue was a nutritional one, and that the introduction of fresh fruit and vegetables to the workers' diets would reverse the worst of the effects. Again upon the advice of the Farmer's Guild, Cain's government planned a program which would promote and provide the means for fresh fruit and vegetables to be cultivated near, and even in, these worker towns.

Organization
Central to this plan would be the Four Sisters. Cain himself was a student of traditional Sedic mysticism and was well aware of the spiritual significance of the four fruits. He was eager to link the republic to traditional Sede practices to show that the previous federation did not have a monopoly on such things. Additionally, the four plants had several advantages which others did not: they each typically fruited within three or four years, allowing for quick returns on investment. They were also hardy and well-suited to the region; each plant did well with great amounts of rain and light frost, the two main limiting factors for crops in Lathadu. Furthermore, each fruit had several established means of preparation within the Lathadun gastronomy, increasing the odds that they would be preserved and eaten year-round. The Lathadun state contracted with the Farmer's Guild, paying for the guild to prepare thousands of seeds and hundreds of saplings to plant in the gardens envisioned by Cain.

In 1891, the plan was announced by Cain's government as a response to the growing issue. The existence of a solution assuaged the fear of the workers who had seen their brethren grow sick or who became sick themselves, as well as the leadership of the various guilds and syndicates themselves. As a way of promoting the program, Cain commissioned several different designs of various posters depicting the Four Sisters as the savior of the Lathadun worker, as well as showing the cooperation of the guilds having made the program possible in the first place. Canned fruit and vegetables also increased in quantity as well as quality domestically, an important first step. In planning the program, Cain and the Four Sisters Commission (a collective head of the initiative made of government and Farmer's Guild personnel) divided the country into eight regions: East Barriaght, West Barriaght, Thói'achith, Cruinnasollan, North Thalloorea, and South Thalloorea. Although the crisis was most severe in East and West Barriaght, Cain and the commission wished to approach the issue in a holistic manner. Even so, however, East and West Barriaght would be the center of the commission's focus.

By 1892, the plan was ready to commence. With a combination of civilian labor and Farmer's Guild workers, countless orchards were planted outside the new workers' towns. Additionally, the rich, newly-reclaimed earth beneath their homes and feet was tilled, and garden rows were dug wherever possible. Vegetables such as radishes, turnips, beets, carrots, cabbage, and looseleaf greens were planted, and seeds were provided for successive years for cultivation. Despite the scale of the project, these news gardens and orchards were not meant to exclusively feed the workers, only to provide life-saving vitamins and nutrients to supplement their diets. Within the first year, the returns on the program were apparent. The horrible symptoms of the malnutrition which had plagued the workers had already begun to reverse, and the diets of the workers improved drastically. However, as the second and third years of the program approached, the full dividends of the effort became apparent.

It was in 1895 when the first widespread harvests from the Four Sisters orchards were reported. Workers who had largely subsided on canned produce before the program reportedly gorged themselves on the fresh fruits. Once the initial wonder and gastrointestinal distress subsided, however, the workers put to use the pamphlets and resources left by the state and set about preserving the fruits for later consumption in whichever way they saw fit. Drying, salting, smoking, pickling, and canning were the most popular means of preservation, and these preserved versions of the fruits found themselves incorporated into several other dishes. By the turn of the 20th century, the issue had by and large disappeared from Lathadu's worker towns.

Legacy
Although the Four Sisters Program had largely been disbanded by 1900, its legacy in Lathadun culture and daily life cannot be overstated. It began a trend of urban and suburban gardening that has carried well into the modern day, and served the nation well during the First, Second, and Third World Wars. The lessons taught by the Four Sisters Program were invaluable in feeding the nation when it faced blockade and invasion from Salia, and the legend of the Four Sisters watching over Lathadu has endured well into the present.

Criticisms
Many nutritionists and academics from within and without the Farmer's Guild criticized the plan for centering too closely around the Four Sisters, which they claimed were "glamor fruits" with little nutritional value compared to some alternatives. Department head of Agricultural Chemistry for the State Agricultural and Mechanical Institute Murchad Elenagh publicly decried the plan, stating that Cain's "proclivities toward faerie stories and old tapestries" had clouded his judgment in designing the program. However, the majority of these critiques faded from the public eye as it began to produce nutritional dividends thanks to other plants featured in the program.

Additionally, many criticized the program's promotion of consumption of persimmons without adequately explaining the risk of growth should unripe fruits be eaten. Instances of phytobezoars skyrocketed as the program's orchards matured, only plateauing and eventually shrinking after nearly half a decade.