2021 Little Easy Bean Network - Bean Lovers Come Discover Something New !

[Pulsegleaner]

and then i had a flat of Adzuki beans off to the side that i wasn't planning on doing this evening but it didn't take me too long to get through them, they're much easier than many other beans.

the seed sizes did not often approach the size of the larger commercial Adzuki beans i alternate planted with the smaller types but towards the end of the season i could tell in the plants that survived which were which. not much rot in the pods and that was good to see. very hard to see if it is there more than what i picked out. i'll have to go through it all again more carefully for the 2nd sort to check my work some day this week or so.

Actually, those are sort of midsize for Azuki's. I'm not sure WHERE I saw them, but I have seen azuki beans the size of pinto beans.

 

[Artorius]

When I grew the "round" version I got a runner and a bush version. When @Artorius grew it he also got a bush version. So this year I tried planting the oval (I called it long) version, the climbing round version, and the bush version. I'd grown the bush version in 2020 and it repeated quite nicely. But although I had 60 seeds I could not get the bush version to sprout and grow this year. I direct seeded them, tried to pre-sprout in a zip loc bag and damp paper towel. Even when I rinsed them in a mild bleach solution they either would not sprout or molded. So that line is lost.

@Ridgerunner
This line is not lost. I can include a batch of seeds in the return package for @Bluejay77. Return documents are not yet finally corrected.

Karachaganak bush.
Last year, a few plants grew with this type of growth from a seed sample I got from @Bluejay77. Four of them survived the hailstorm, I harvested seeds and sowed again this year. They all grew as a true bush. Most of the seeds are smaller and more rounded than those of the half runner versions. The color pattern remained unchanged.

 

[Blue-Jay]

@Ridgerunner
This line is not lost. I can include a batch of seeds in the return package for @Bluejay77. Return documents are not yet finally corrected.

@Ridgerunner

This line is not lost. I can include a batch of seeds in the return package for @Bluejay77. Return documents are not yet finally corrected.

It'a amazing that some of the growers of Karachaganack are getting bush versions of this seed. It's absolutely a gorgeous bean. Every time I plant I get semi runners.

@Artorius, Yes please send me some of the bush version Karachagnacks. I wonder if for some odd reason they will revert back to semi runners in the soil here. Maybe it's the earth's magnetic fields in this place that is doing it. Maybe I don't live in Woodstock but Weirdstock.

 

[Ridgerunner]

It'a amazing that some of the growers of Karachaganack are getting bush versions of this seed. It's absolutely a gorgeous bean. Every time I plant I get semi runners.

Karachaganak came from the WB #39 packet. Norridgewock is supposed to be one of the parent beans, not sure what it was crossed with but I suspect a bush bean. I found this write-up at the Great Lakes Staple Seeds site. It has the Snowcap or Mostoller Wild Goose pattern, like Karachaganak.

An Abenaki heritage bean with a notable history from pre-Civil War times, Norridgewock climbs at least 5 feet. A versatile, hearty dry bean.

Norridgewock Bean

(Phaseolus vulgaris); Heirloom; Pole bean; Dry bean; Minimum 20 seeds An Abenaki heritage bean with a notable history from pre-Civil War times, Norridgewock climbs at least 5 feet. A versatile, hearty dry bean. We sourced our stock from the Heirloom Seed Project of Medomak Valley High School in...

greatlakesstapleseeds.com

I got seven segregations from the WB #39 packet. Three of the seven were bush. Valley View and Banzala stabilized as bush. I never grew out Up the Valley but you had a nice story abut someone getting it from you for a project and getting good production. Of the other four climbers, Jas stabilized as what I called a half-runner. I never grew Glade Springs. Tyra and Karachaganak both had some segregations that came as bush though most were limited climbers. None of them were full pole beans, were limited in height. Maybe I don't have a good appreciation of the difference between semi-runners and half-runners.

 

[flowerbug]

Actually, those are sort of midsize for Azuki's. I'm not sure WHERE I saw them, but I have seen azuki beans the size of pinto beans.

i'm ok with them being in the mid-range to small size, i just want them to be bigger than 2mm.

 

[jbosmith]

Hi there!

@flowerbug posting about small beans reminded me that I had something else to share! When we were cleaning up the community garden last year there was a plot that one of our immigrant gardeners had abandoned that was absolutely full of black eyed peas. They were the healthiest legumes in the garden and I decided to try my hand at cowpeas even though I always assumed they were just a southern thing.

I tried these varieties:

(Probably Black Eyed Peas from a Goya bag)
Whippoorwill cowpeas (Southern Exposure)
Peking Black cowpeas (Southern Exposure)
Whippoorwill, Steele's Black cowpeas (Southern Exposure)
Fast Lady cowpeas (Victory Seeds)
Holstein cowpeas (Seed saver in western NY)
Ozark Razorback cowpeas (Seed saver in western NY)
Grey Speckled Palapye Cowpea (Great Lakes Staple Seed)

Fast Lady (the white ones) and Grey Speckled Palapye (the grey ones) were the only varieties that made a real showing. Most of the rest are only now putting out pods. I suspect some of the others were feeling a little crowded as the plants were bigger than I expected. I also tried to grow them on a trellis while the plot I saw last year had them sprawling like field peas planted as a cover. That was only moderately successful. They could be trained but seemed to prefer sprawling. Any thoughts or advice for future years are welcome! I know @Zeedman has a couple of MN varieties that I want to try.

 

[flowerbug]

two pictures of Yed, which i happened to finish a bit ago the last few shells that had dried down that i picked last week in the rain.

i'm sad that these are such a long season bean because this pattern is so unique among all the beans i've ever seen and i can barely grow them.

this pic was taken with my light setup (i didn't much like it and had to fiddle about too much with the photo edit software to get even close to the right colors but it is what i had):

then the sun came out and i took this one instead (much better color and no fiddling):

 

[Blue-Jay]

i'm sad that these are such a long season bean because this pattern is so unique among all the beans i've ever seen and i can barely grow them.

Maybe you can presprout the seed and push your planting date up a little earlier. I presprouted Ping Zebra this year and I have gotten the biggest seed harvest from PZ ever. I planted PZ probably 10 days earlier that I usually do. Maybe you will figure out how to get that bean matured in your gardens.

 

[Blue-Jay]

Got my first foreign Network seed return that had gone through the USDA inspection station in Linden, New Jersey yesterday. The package came through beautifully. Ha ! they didn't return it to the sender like San Fransico did last winter. I think we are routing the overseas packages through a good place now.

 

[jbosmith]

Maybe you can presprout the seed and push your planting date up a little earlier. I presprouted Ping Zebra this year and I have gotten the biggest seed harvest from PZ ever. I planted PZ probably 10 days earlier that I usually do. Maybe you will figure out how to get that bean matured in your gardens.

10" x 20" Premium X-DEEP 50 Cell Seedling Plug Tray - USA_Seedling Trays_Trays, Domes, Rooting Plugs & Kits_Propagation

10" x 20" Premium X-DEEP 50 Cell Seedling Plug Tray - USA Configuration: 5 x 10 Outside dimensions (inches): 10.80 x 21.23 Cell top diameter (inches): 1.88 Cell depth (inches): 4.50 Max dry volume (cubic cm / cubic in): 144.00 / 8.80 Drain diameter (punched): 0.50'' Cell shape: Octagonal with...

groindoor.com

I don't know anything about this company but it came up in an image search. I have the 32 cell version of these, sold for sprouting trees, and you can grow huge bean seedlings in them if you have the space. They're nice because they're open on the bottom so the roots don't hit the bottom immediately and go round and round like they do in regular trays.

I usually use standard 72 cell trays but I'm only sprouting for pre-germination in case the soil is cool. I used these big cells once for Dibramo and they worked great.