2025 Little Easy Bean Network - Growers Of The Future Will Be Glad We Saved

[flowerbug]

Some more recent bean mail. This is a beautiful bean I ran across about two weeks ago. From a grower in Pescadaro, California. The grower says the bean is a cross between Anasazi and Rio Zape. I believe it is a pole bean.

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Anna Zape - Pole Dry

lovely!

 

[flowerbug]

... They’re all a foot or two tall now. I plant them in cut off plastic bottles to protect against the worst freeze and wind but they will stand quite a lot of cold. As @heirloomgal says, the round seeded varieties are hardier than the wrinkled seeds and can survive right through the winter if they don’t get attacked by rodents.

you're in a place with much milder winters than what we get here.

i do have pretty good luck growing Green Beauty peas into August here as long as they are kept watered. the clay seems to help, i think they would give up earlier in sandier soil (which also gets warmer).

i agree though about later planted peas often having powdery mildew issues that don't show up in the first crop. it is too bad though since it would be nice to have a second crop of peas and pea pods.

 

[Decoy1]

you're in a place with much milder winters than what we get here.

i do have pretty good luck growing Green Beauty peas into August here as long as they are kept watered. the clay seems to help, i think they would give up earlier in sandier soil (which also gets warmer).

i agree though about later planted peas often having powdery mildew issues that don't show up in the first crop. it is too bad though since it would be nice to have a second crop of peas and pea pods.

We have frosts down to -8 but not often and not for days on end.
I was assuming that by March peas would be able to survive your conditions, but perhaps I under-estimated.

It's often round-seeded podding dwarf varieties which are sown early here, like Kelvedon Wonder and Meteor but there are some tough mangetout types as well, like Winterkefe and Frühe Heinrich

 

[flowerbug]

We have frosts down to -8 but not often and not for days on end.
I was assuming that by March peas would be able to survive your conditions, but perhaps I under-estimated.

It's often round-seeded podding dwarf varieties which are sown early here, like Kelvedon Wonder and Meteor but there are some tough mangetout types as well, like Winterkefe and Frühe Heinrich

we can have quite cold snaps (-30C or worse at times). a few days ago we were at about -3C. i hope now we're past that.

i don't plant out any warm weather crops until towards the end of May.

 

[jbrobin09]

We have frosts down to -8 but not often and not for days on end.
I was assuming that by March peas would be able to survive your conditions, but perhaps I under-estimated.

It's often round-seeded podding dwarf varieties which are sown early here, like Kelvedon Wonder and Meteor but there are some tough mangetout types as well, like Winterkefe and Frühe Heinrich

I’m jealous! We have winter temps down to -43C (although that is only for a night or two) and typically weeks of -30C with less than 2 feet of snow. It’s pretty harsh. We still have -2 to -5C at night right now and got snow last night! It’s really hard to figure out the timing of planting. We’ve had killing frost as late as May 31, so I have to be constantly watching the weather app! I am thinking I can plant some smooth peas now, though based on what you all have been posting. That would be the earliest I’ve ever planted.

 

[heirloomgal]

We have frosts down to -8 but not often and not for days on end.
I was assuming that by March peas would be able to survive your conditions, but perhaps I under-estimated.

It's often round-seeded podding dwarf varieties which are sown early here, like Kelvedon Wonder and Meteor but there are some tough mangetout types as well, like Winterkefe and Frühe Heinrich

Isn't Kelvedon Wonder such a fabulous pea? I just love it. I'm quite thrilled with Hurst Green Shaft as well. Although with all the magnificent diversity of peas you have in England, Kelvedon might fall lower on the spectrum of wonder than it would here with our scarcity of pea types.

 

[heirloomgal]

I’m jealous! We have winter temps down to -43C (although that is only for a night or two) and typically weeks of -30C with less than 2 feet of snow. It’s pretty harsh. We still have -2 to -5C at night right now and got snow last night! It’s really hard to figure out the timing of planting. We’ve had killing frost as late as May 31, so I have to be constantly watching the weather app! I am thinking I can plant some smooth peas now, though based on what you all have been posting. That would be the earliest I’ve ever planted.

We have about the same @jbrobin09 , but with typically quite heavy snow cover. That is quite demanding of the perennials I imagine. Both my kale and parsley plants magically survived this winter season, but once we had a few -20 nights with no snow, that was it for them.

 

[heirloomgal]

This is a first & I'm super shocked. They actually opened my package. Thank goodness they still sent it along and I got it alright, but this is concerning. I'm not sure if this was just a random thing because the beans in here had some weight to them, or if this is the result of something else. It's not really a problem from the point of view that Canada has an open border policy with seeds, but still. Doesn't bode well to me.

 

[Decoy1]

I’m jealous! We have winter temps down to -43C (although that is only for a night or two) and typically weeks of -30C with less than 2 feet of snow. It’s pretty harsh. We still have -2 to -5C at night right now and got snow last night! It’s really hard to figure out the timing of planting. We’ve had killing frost as late as May 31, so I have to be constantly watching the weather app! I am thinking I can plant some smooth peas now, though based on what you all have been posting. That would be the earliest I’ve ever planted.

I’m beginning to understand why England is associated with pea growing and feel humbly grateful for our comparatively mild winters and in awe of those in this group who do so much with such short seasons. We can still have frosts up till the middle of May so (to return to beans!) I’m only now, tentatively, beginning to sow in modules a few dwarf beans which I can cover with double fleece if a frost should threaten.