2018 Little Easy Bean Network - Join Us In Saving Amazing Heirloom Beans

[Blue-Jay]

i'm curious if i'm the only person here who does such things?

No @flowerbug you aren't the only person who does such things. Over a week ago when we were into what would become our 14 inches of rain in a week. I was driving tall poles with screws sticking out of them to pull up bush and semi runner plants that were full of mature pods swollen with seed some of them very yellow with some green ones thrown in. I picked some very wet brown pods and took them into the house and spread them out on sheets of cardboard and set a fan blowing on them for days to dry the pods and seed inside. Some leather pods I shelled out and wrote marker tags and placed the shelled out seed on syro foam picnic plates to also dry in front of the fan. I did save a lot of seed from being ruined. We went from excellent drying weather in early to later in August and harvested about a third of the pods to monsoon weather in late August and early September for over a week and now we are back to excellent drying weather again. Yep harvest time keeps a lot of us bean growers very busy actually all summer long.

 

[flowerbug]

No @flowerbug you aren't the only person who does such things. Over a week ago when we were into what would become our 14 inches of rain in a week. I was driving tall poles with screws sticking out of them to pull up bush and semi runner plants that were full of mature pods swollen with seed some of them very yellow with some green ones thrown in. I picked some very wet brown pods and took them into the house and spread them out on sheets of cardboard and set a fan blowing on them for days to dry the pods and seed inside. Some leather pods I shelled out and wrote marker tags and placed the shelled out seed on syro foam picnic plates to also dry in front of the fan. I did save a lot of seed from being ruined. We went from excellent drying weather in early to later in August and harvested about a third of the pods to monsoon weather in late August and early September for over a week and now we are back to excellent drying weather again. Yep harvest time keeps a lot of us bean growers very busy actually all summer long.

i didn't mind some of that rain for sure, but then it became too much, i was wondering if the tomatoes would even finish as there wasn't much sun for so long...

i had some bits of white mold start up but caught it early enough. i also have a lot of water marked beans of certain varieties, but they're not spoiled so i'll eat them anyways.

weather looks good for the next week at least here which is a nice break, but we've got heavy fogs forecast for the next few evenings so that'll keep things a bit more wet than i'd like.

 

[flowerbug]

away from on-line for some number of days due to chimney needing work which will likely mean no internet connection. hope everyone's fall bean harvest is continuing well and i'll be thinking of y'all.

 

[flowerbug]

one more bean garden to go and then done until next week with the bean picking. shouldn't take more than a half hour to an hour depending upon how many are ready.

much better condition this time around which is nice when shelling.

a few plants still green/flowering and left alone.

 

[aftermidnight]

Hubby went out and took a pic of a few Ralph's Italian pods this morning, these few are about 10' high on the vine, some are way up the magnolia around 16' maybe just maybe some will be mature enough to pick for seed before the weather turns. Victory Seed has it down as a green bean but the pod looks somewhere in between a green and a wax.

 

[Decoy1]

I’d appreciate some feedback about seed storing. As a fairly new bean addict I’ve collected about 30 varieties over the last couple of years. I’m aware that I don’t need - and physically can’t! - grow them all on every year.
I wonder how many years on average experienced growers feel it’s a good idea to generate new stock by growing a particular variety again. Also I’d be interested to know how you’ve found this is affected by keeping at room temperature, in fridge or in freezer. And do most bean-seed-savers freeze for a few days to eliminate any would-be pests?
Jan
PS. I’m hoping to take part in Russ’s growing network next season - in England.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Jan, welcome to the forum and this thread. Put your feet up, grab an appropriate beverage, and join in anywhere you wish. We'd love to see some photo of the bean you are growing. It's sort of a fall tradition, people put on bean shows of the seeds they've saved. I won't be doing that since I moved and did not grow any this season.

I'll let other more experienced people answer most of those questions. I freeze mine to make sure all pests are destroyed. I used to save them in a freezer after that, one that was not self-defrosting. I'm not sure how the freezing/thawing cycles of a self-defrosting refrigerator might affect them. After my move I now store them in zip-loc type bags at room temperature in a climate controlled house.

 

[PhilaGardener]

Welcome! Keeping seeds in a freezer is a great idea. Avoid self-defrosting units (chest freezers are very economical to operate too), and package your seeds in moisture-tight containers (baggies are fine but I use heavier grades so they last longer). When you take seeds out to plant some (or trade), make sure you warm them all to room temp and let the condensation on the outside of the container dry completely before you open it. Freezer storage of dry seed improves longevity, protects the seed from insects and rodents, and has a lot going for it. On the other hand, it can be hard to find specific things at times if you aren't organized. I'm still working on the perfect filing system.

 

[Decoy1]

Hi Ridgerunner and PhilaGardener
Thank you very much for your welcome and for the useful sharing. I’ve also been welcomed by aftermidnight elsewhere so it’s great to look forward to being part of a lively, experienced and friendly group.
You both warn against self-defrosting freezers, which are the kind I have! Is that because the temperature goes up and down too much? This is interesting and something I hadn’t considered. What is the danger from a bit of fluctuation?

I have found this forum amazingly interesting and informative and have dipped into previous years too. I’m really pleased to have found it. I’ll have lots of questions I think.
I’ll certainly reckon to post some pictures. I’ve grown a few of Russ’s varieties which I got from him earlier in the year. Had a great (and beautiful) crop from Smith River Super Speckle, Edogava Zuranacki Namame and Cannellino Rosso, especially the first two. The half climbing Refugee has been pretty good too though the smaller beans feel like more of a curiosity than a useful food. I’d like to find that disproved though. Buxton Buckshot is slow and only beginning to give dried seed now but it’s good to have the spread of timing.
Still quite a lot to harvest and share.

 

[Ridgerunner]

The perfect filing system! Ever wonder what Russ goes through in keeping beans straight? I hate to think about it.

I typically only save about 50 bean seeds per variety. These go in small zip-loc type bags, storage type bags are fine. I include a piece of paper with variety written in it plus mark the bag with the variety using a black Sharpie. These then go into a gallon freezer bag with "Bean Seeds" and the year written on it. All mine could fit in a gallon bag. I'd do the same thing with my beans I grow for production but save a lot more seeds and those go in a different gallon bag. I keep a spreadsheet each year of the different varieties in the computer and print out a hard copy to save in a special file. I have lost data due to computer crashes or technology changes where the new upgraded software will not open the older files. I know I'm a dinosaur but I believe in hard copies.

Jan, I don't have any scientific proof but I don't feel comfortable with seeds going through a freezing/thawing cycle too much. Maybe it doesn't make any difference, I really don't know. But it seems like it gives an opportunity for something to go wrong. I prefer to store them at a more steady temperature, either below freezing or above. One of the reasons I mentioned it was to get some of the experts to comment on it.