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

[flowerbug]

@Zeedman

The Sierra Madre are coming along nicely.

wow, that's a long skinny bean...

 

[HmooseK]

@Zeedman

I'm assuming they are going to get a little wider. Correct? At what point do you usually pick yours to eat? I don't want to eat many cause I'm trying to save seed, but I'd still like to sample a few.

 

[Zeedman]

@HmooseK , Sierra Madre is one of the widest yardlongs I've grown. Provided they are kept well watered, they can reach close to the diameter of a regular snap bean, and still remain tender. They are the closest I've tasted to a regular snap bean, too... and cooked as part of a dish, will contribute to the broth.

Edit: I probably didn't give enough info, re: how to recognize proper harvest stage. You can harvest as long as the pods remain smooth, and the pod color is dark green. Once the bulges appear, it may be too late - although a couple Filipinos that we know will still use them at that stage.

 

[reedy]

My bonus Lima beans, Snowstorm and Rosie Clare are blooming and look great.

Mrs. Mauds were slow on the get go but once they took off they really took off and have overshot the 8' trellis. They are also blooming. *They did it with only one watering!! Definitely a keeper variety, assuming they taste good.

The Dr. Martin vine has made it a couple feet up the trellis but is struggling. More than a little worried about being able to return good seeds from it but there is plenty of season left so who knows.

Madagascar and I are in an ongoing dispute over whether or not they will climb the trellis. Vines are nice and lush with bloom buds forming but just one vine of the bunch wants to climb. I keep putting them up and they keep flopping back down. O'well gives me something to do I reckon.

Small Speckled Bunch are not as vigorous as I really like but they look OK and are just now starting to bloom. Their less than ideal performance is likely due to being in a new part of the garden where the soil has not been improved much. Not worried about them though, looks like I should have plenty for seed and a few to sample as snaps as well.

 

[HmooseK]

@HmooseK , Sierra Madre is one of the widest yardlongs I've grown. Provided they are kept well watered, they can reach close to the diameter of a regular snap bean, and still remain tender. They are the closest I've tasted to a regular snap bean, too... and cooked as part of a dish, will contribute to the broth.

Edit: I probably didn't give enough info, re: how to recognize proper harvest stage. You can harvest as long as the pods remain smooth, and the pod color is dark green. Once the bulges appear, it may be too late - although a couple Filipinos that we know will still use them at that stage.

Thanks Buddy! I have a few at this stage. I kinda hate to eat them, as I need to save all the seeds I can, but I'm dying to try them. I was planning on simmering them with onions and bacon.

 

[Zeedman]

@HmooseK , those plants look pretty short... are they sending up runners?

 

[HmooseK]

Yes. They have run up about 4 feet, but I've noticed all my beans are low so far. It was my fault for not getting them something to climb in the beginning. I was gone for about a week and during that time they shot up a good couple of feet and I had to wrap the vines around the posts and strings. I'll snap a picture this afternoon for ya.

 

[HmooseK]

@Zeedman

Hey Chris, it looks like I was wrong. I didn't think the runners had went up the pole that far, but my wife showed them to me today. It's up about 8'. I don't see very well, but here is a pic. I was right about all the beans being low though.

 

[flowerbug]

finally seeing some flowers on a few plants and the climbers have finally figured out where the fence is at, have climbed their poles and are now getting to the fence so they can climb further.

some plants that sprouted a month ago are the same size as they were back then, they may be shaded too much, or the mole underneath them set them back or ... and then there are the lima beans which have really taken off the past week.

this has been such a strange year already and i'm learning a lot about what not to do for next year.

the very flooded bean garden survived.

 

[HmooseK]

@Zeedman

Or anyone else. I have a question. I normally wait till my beans have dried on the vine before saving seeds, but we are in for a lot of rain starting tomorrow and all next week.

I have a few beans that have made seed, but they are still green. Would it hurt to pick the ones that have large beans in them an dry in the garage.

I'm talking about just picking the beans not the whole vine.