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

[HmooseK]

Have all my rare beans in my lap. Plan on planting 4-6 each of my rare ones. Too scared to go all in.

 

[flowerbug]

i certainly understand, hate risking everything on one season or one planting...

 

[HmooseK]

Well, the young fellow that was supposed to till up my garden, broke his arm, so I'm on my own. I'm not physically able, so all I can do is scratch a few spots in the ground around the yard. I'm disappointed, but I'll survive.

Today I planted three varieties. They are probably too close together, but it was the best I could do. They are about 15 feet apart.

4 Hoteko
4 Oaxacan Cream
8 Chestnut Flavored

 

[Eleanor]

Well, the young fellow that was supposed to till up my garden, broke his arm, so I'm on my own. I'm not physically able, so all I can do is scratch a few spots in the ground around the yard. I'm disappointed, but I'll survive.

Today I planted three varieties. They are probably too close together, but it was the best I could do. They are about 15 feet apart.

4 Hoteko
4 Oaxacan Cream
8 Chestnut Flavored

The other day I learned a cool new word and now I have a use for it! Cleistogamy - the botanical feature of beans (and peas, peanuts, ... ) such that their flowers are designed to auto-pollinate before they even open. This means your 15' spacing is more than likely okay. If you are really worried about it, plant a barrier crop between them that is really attractive to pollinators such as buckwheat or lacy phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia) or hyssop or...

 

[saritabee]

So I've had pretty good luck getting bean seed to sprout between two damp microfiber cloths, in one of those clear 2-lb spinach tubs, under a grow light.

But holy bejeebers -- I put Mugungi, Gordo, and Harriet's Black Hook in a tub yesterday morning, and just came home to find 4 of 6 Gordo had sprouted, and 7 of 7 Mugungi. Two of the five very old-looking Harriet's seeds had sprouted as well! (One doesn't look super healthy, but still...)

 

[Blue-Jay]

@saritabee,

Is it warm enough where you live to plant outside already? I won't be planting here until late May or early June. Some of my bush bean plantings could even be pushed off as late as the 17th of June.

 

[reedy]

@Bluejay77
I think I'v picked out what I want to grow this year.

From Grow Out lists
-Small Speckled Bunch (semi runner)
-Pink Early (semi runner)
-Mrs. Maud's (pole Lima)
-Dr. Martin's (pole Lima)

Other Selections
-Snowstorm (pole Lima)
-Rosie Clare (pole Lima)

Question: I don't mind if mine get mixed up some but how much separation should I shoot for on the grow-out Limas?

 

[Blue-Jay]

@reedy,

Wow you have a lot of limas in your selections this year. Since you got two semi runners I would treat those like pole beans and seperate the limas with runners in between them. Two plantings of semi runners then one planting of a pole lima. What did you grow last year? Maybe you could use some of what you grew last year to seperate the limas also. I would set your pole plantings also about 5 feet apart in the row and maybe have your rows about six feet apart. I think you had Burgundy Bolitas and Crystal Wax last year. I think those were semi runners that you could also treat as a pole bean this time around.

 

[reedy]

@Bluejay77
Yea, I want to up my collection of Limas. I have two gardens about 150' feet apart. It seems to me that Limas are more prone to crossing than common beans. I think I'll put the grow out Limas and only them in one garden at opposite ends, about 75' apart. That way I can put some other pole beans and corn in between. I'll just separate the others by alternating with common pole beans in the other garden.

Here is a list of what else I'm planning to grow from my own seeds. These are semi isolated cause we like them to be uniform for canning or fresh green beans. I still get crossing I just cull out off types when I save seeds. Variable maturity also helps with preventing too much crossing.
Provider Bush
Contender Bush
Top Crop Bush
KY Wonder Pole
NT 1/2 Runner Pole
Blue Lake Pole
Ohio Pole
Little Brown Greasy Pole
New from last year - Refugee Semi runner ( we really liked these!)
That's about all I have room for to keep good separation in different spots in the gardens. I have 20 or so others that I like to keep pure that won't be grown this year.

I also grow a mix up of pole beans for dry beans. It includes all the out-crosses I come across plus a bunch of other varieties whose names I'v forgotten. This mix is getting so big I may make a third smaller garden just for it.

I'm not gonna grow any other Limas this year, just the grow-outs and the other two new ones.

 

[Blue-Jay]

@reedy,

You will have a pretty good grow out of beans for sure. Can you please pick another bean to replace "Early Pink" I have sent out all the seed of that one already.