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

[Blue-Jay]

@Bluejay77 I'd be curious to know how you harvest dry pods over time from your plants (if you do that) and keep them all separated?

In my early bean growing days I had a small box setup in my garage with a label on each box for the pods of each seperate variety to be deposited in them. The pods could remain open air to continue to dry further until the garden was finished. Then the shelling of the beans would be the next step in the season. In those days I probably didn't grow more than 30 or 40 varieties each year. I would harvest the varieties from my garden one by one. The varieties in the garden were seperated in the rows by a steak sticking up out of the ground so I knew where one varieties ended in the row and the plant of the next one began on the other side of my marker steak. I grew several varieties in a single row. I always had a diagram of my garden that I carried with me, hand written. I knew where the row started on which side of the garden and I knew what was planted in each row between each set of steaks. I never put labels on anything in the garden as weather and sun can ruin or fade labels.

These days when I collect bean pods I still have those marker steaks dividing bean varieties and I still have a garden diagram of what is planted in each row and where in the row each variety is growing. The garden diagrams these days are on my computer and if I would happen to lose a diagram I can print out another. I continue to keep each years diagrams also as you never know why you might still have reasons to look back on past seasons to what you grew and where in your bean patch it grew. So again these days I now collect pods with plastic grocery bags that are light colored enough to write on them with a marker pen. I know which side of the garden the row begins and what each variety is that follows in the row. This year had three varieties of bush beans planted in each row so I had two marker steaks separating those three varieties. Row one for instance had three collection bags. The first bag was simply marked 1.1. Which stands for row one, position one. The second variety in that row was collected with a bag marked 1.2. Which stands for row one position two and so on for all the rows that I had. I don't write the variety name on the bags because the varieties change each year in the rows and I can still use these same bags for the next season if they are still good. I just have a new diagram to follow. I harvest pods methodically going up each row the same way every time on each collection day. Then when I get back to my house I have these styro picnic plates each with a label on it with the variety name and row number and postion in the row. I deposit the pods on these plates to dry further. Before the plates get piled to high with pods. Often the pods have dried enough over several days of colletion that I can start hand shelling pods when I get out of bed in the morning before I do more pod collections.

When the pods start drying in late summer. The collection and shelling process becomes a full time job for awhile until the gardens are finished and roto-tiled again. These are my methods and maybe there could be better ones but for me they work.

Lately now that the gardens are finished. I am in the process of taking photos of the seed of every bean variety and every off type seed they produce if they produce any. I also save all the photos in each years photo folder on my computer.

The next step will be packaging all the seeds in labeled ziploc baggies and packing them away in the freezer in labeled boxes. Plus recording on my freezer inventory list what is packed in each of those boxes. I'm really like a minature seed company.

 

[flowerbug]

i don't keep flats for each plant, but within each variety i grow i do keep a flat for early and another flat for later if there are enough that i don't get them shelled out and in containers before the later pickings.

by the end of sorting season i have several containers for each variety because i want the earliest seeds apart from the later ones and i also make seed selections as i'm shelling for the bulk beans so i have those done based upon what the pod and shelling is like and the condition of the seeds, i'm also looking for certain seed shapes and sizes so i may have separate containers for those too. all just small 2oz plastic cups that are often left right in the flat as i'm shelling until later on when i start putting tops on things as by then they have all dried down and they won't rot. by the 3rd sorting i'm done other than if i get seed requests later in the winter then i may have to go back in and look through to get more seeds to distribute.

 

[Zeedman]

Does heavy rain affect cowpeas more than beans? How do they react? Do they just seem to sit there? Cause that's what most of my plants did this summer. They put on beans right when it started getting cooler but a long wet streak ended then too.

During the weeks of heavy rain, and until the soil dried out after, all of my beans & other legumes just sat there. There was a lot of yellowing during that period too, along with some withering... and unfortunately, quite a few plants perished.

Very heavy rain - to the point of flooding or waterlogged soil - isn't good for any legume (or almost any other vegetable for that matter). But given adequate drainage, cowpeas (and yardlongs) are IMO far more tolerant. They generally do very well in wet years; and in the case of yardlong beans, produce the best quality pods if soil is not allowed to dry. Even when stressed by excessive rain - as they were this year - they showed the ability to recover quickly.

Beans, on the other hand, can suffer severely from excess moisture. They are much more susceptible to disease under those conditions, are more prone to stunting - and apparently, far less likely to recover. All of the common beans in my rural garden were permanently stunted this year, with pole beans reverting to bush habit, or sending up one weak runner. Many plants were lost, and one variety did not recover at all. Runner beans were affected to the same degree, with many plants lost, and the survivors just barely hanging on.

Of all the legumes planted this year, cowpeas, soybeans, limas, mung beans, adzuki, and hyacinth beans were most tolerant of the wet conditions. Cowpeas, limas, adzuki, and mung beans had severe stunting initially, but recovered when the rains finally passed & produced 50% or more of the expected yield. Soybeans had only minor stunting, and most yielded as expected. The hyacinth beans laughed off the rain, and showed no stunting whatsoever. Common beans, runner beans, and peas were the big losers.

Garbanzos & grass peas failed also, but more likely from heat than from the rain which came later.

 

[jbosmith]

Very heavy rain - to the point of flooding or waterlogged soil - isn't good for any legume (or almost any other vegetable for that matter). But given adequate drainage, cowpeas (and yardlongs) are IMO far more tolerant. They generally do very well in wet years; and in the case of yardlong beans, produce the best quality pods if soil is not allowed to dry. Even when stressed by excessive rain - as they were this year - they showed the ability to recover quickly.

Beans, on the other hand, can suffer severely from excess moisture. They are much more susceptible to disease under those conditions, are more prone to stunting - and apparently, far less likely to recover. All of the common beans in my rural garden were permanently stunted this year, with pole beans reverting to bush habit, or sending up one weak runner. Many plants were lost, and one variety did not recover at all. Runner beans were affected to the same degree, with many plants lost, and the survivors just barely hanging on.

Of all the legumes planted this year, cowpeas, soybeans, limas, mung beans, adzuki, and hyacinth beans were most tolerant of the wet conditions. Cowpeas, limas, adzuki, and mung beans had severe stunting initially, but recovered when the rains finally passed & produced 50% or more of the expected yield. Soybeans had only minor stunting, and most yielded as expected. The hyacinth beans laughed off the rain, and showed no stunting whatsoever. Common beans, runner beans, and peas were the big losers.

Garbanzos & grass peas failed also, but more likely from heat than from the rain which came later.

I have so many more thoughts now than before reading this...

1) So much for that idea. A few years ago the garden the cowpeas were in this year went from a foot of standing flood water to workable ground in two days. Peas growing in the same spot as the cowpeas were this year barely noticed.

1b) How do cowpeas respond to temperatures, both average and in swings? That was my original thought with this year's experiment. Only two varieties put on pods before it cooled down. Our spring was short and hot to the extent that it was tough to get an early green pea crop.

2) What do you use hyacinth beans for? We sometimes grow the popular purple ones on a border fence as a decoration but haven't done anything with the beans except save them for the next year.

3) I thought grasspeas were a neo-tropical plant?!

 

[Zeedman]

1b) How do cowpeas respond to temperatures, both average and in swings? That was my original thought with this year's experiment. Only two varieties put on pods before it cooled down. Our spring was short and hot to the extent that it was tough to get an early green pea crop.

Cowpeas like heat. They are mostly grown in the southern U.S., where they tolerate much more heat than those of us in the North experience. Neither of us is likely to ever see cowpeas heat-stressed. They don't like cool temperatures though - especially cold winds or cool nights. Temps below 50 F. will stunt them, but if pods have already set, the plants may just abort flowers & young pods, to mature the older pods.

2) What do you use hyacinth beans for? We sometimes grow the popular purple ones on a border fence as a decoration but haven't done anything with the beans except save them for the next year.

The hyacinth bean I grow is a white-flowered bush variety that is not daylength sensitive- unlike most hyacinth beans. It blooms just over 30 days after planting. This variety was bred for the flattened immature pods, which look like somewhat bumpy, bean-flavored snow peas. That is the only hyacinth bean I grow now, since it seeds easily here. All of the pole varieties I tried were daylength sensitive, and bloomed too late for my short summer. There is another day-neutral hyacinth bean that was bred for edible seeds, but I haven't grown it (yet).

 

[Zeedman]

3) I thought grasspeas were a neo-tropical plant?!

From the Wiki:

Lathyrus sativus grows best where the average temperature is 10–25 °C

Mine died out when the heat set in, along with the garbanzos, which prefer similar temps. The grass peas were just a trial, so no big deal... but I really wish I could grow garbanzos reliably. I have a large-seeded, chestnut-red variety that I really want to grow in quantity.

 

[jbosmith]

Cowpeas like heat. They are mostly grown in the southern U.S., where they tolerate much more heat than those of us in the North experience. Neither of us is likely to ever see cowpeas heat-stressed. They don't like cool temperatures though - especially cold winds or cool nights. Temps below 50 F. will stunt them, but if pods have already set, the plants may just abort flowers & young pods, to mature the older pods.

I've been trying to ignore that particular piece of logic. I was hoping it had more to do with the long spring and fall in the south. I just want my regular ol beans to be as resistant to bugs as cow peas so I can give up on them.

The hyacinth bean I grow is a white-flowered bush variety that is not daylength sensitive- unlike most hyacinth beans. It blooms just over 30 days after planting. This variety was bred for the flattened immature pods, which look like somewhat bumpy, bean-flavored snow peas. That is the only hyacinth bean I grow now, since it seeds easily here. All of the pole varieties I tried were daylength sensitive, and bloomed too late for my short summer. There is another day-neutral hyacinth bean that was bred for edible seeds, but I haven't grown it (yet).
View attachment 45036

Weird. I thought all hyacinth beans were toxic ornamentals. Another thing to try!

From the Wiki:

Mine died out when the heat set in, along with the garbanzos, which prefer similar temps. The grass peas were just a trial, so no big deal... but I really wish I could grow garbanzos reliably. I have a large-seeded, chestnut-red variety that I really want to grow in quantity.

Oh! Turns out I was thinking of Claypeas. Google says those are a type of cowpea but to me it's just some mystery in the SSE Exchange that I give up on when I read about it growing in Florida

ETA: I'd also like to be able to grow garbanzos. I was going to try Black Kabouli next year.

Speaking of random legumes, I think a veggie garden I was looking at today had a whole row of senna in it and I have no idea why. That's another ornamental in my view of the world.

And to go waaaay off topic, I also poked around for a bit in a cotton field. What a pretty crop.

(I'm currently visiting southern Alabama)

Thanks!

 

[flowerbug]

During the weeks of heavy rain, and until the soil dried out after, all of my beans & other legumes just sat there. There was a lot of yellowing during that period too, along with some withering... and unfortunately, quite a few plants perished.
...

i lost a lot more bean plants this year from rot than before, but for me the pickiest beans were the Fort Portal Jade and for some reason i could not get the Hidatsa Shield Figure to do much again. a few weeks ago i found five more FPJ seeds of which only three may be viable. i didn't find any more HSF beans at all.

i'll be looking again at each bean plot when i get to them for putting the gardens up for the winter so there is always a chance i'll find some later beans that did manage to finish but it being so late i hate to encourage any longer season bean habits in any of my plantings. with all the rains we've had the quality might be really iffy too. still surprises do happen - i've had some really groady looking pods give me perfect beans.

 

[Pulsegleaner]

I've been trying to ignore that particular piece of logic. I was hoping it had more to do with the long spring and fall in the south. I just want my regular ol beans to be as resistant to bugs as cow peas so I can give up on them.



Weird. I thought all hyacinth beans were toxic ornamentals. Another thing to try!



Oh! Turns out I was thinking of Claypeas. Google says those are a type of cowpea but to me it's just some mystery in the SSE Exchange that I give up on when I read about it growing in Florida

ETA: I'd also like to be able to grow garbanzos. I was going to try Black Kabouli next year.

Speaking of random legumes, I think a veggie garden I was looking at today had a whole row of senna in it and I have no idea why. That's another ornamental in my view of the world.
View attachment 45037

View attachment 45038

And to go waaaay off topic, I also poked around for a bit in a cotton field. What a pretty crop.

View attachment 45039

(I'm currently visiting southern Alabama)

Thanks!

Hyacinth beans are edible as young pods. Some are edible as mature seed as well, but usually need to be either leached or cooked in a few changes of water. In general whiter seed coated hyacinths are better for eating mature than darker seed coated ones. Unfortunately, most are also very day length sensitive, so your choices of ones that will mature are somewhat limited.


That's actually pigeon peas, Cajanus cajan, not senna. Senna is a Caespaloid legume, and doesn't have what one would think of as "typical" legume flowers (if you have ever seen Royal Pochiana, THAT'S a typical Caespaloid flower.)

As for why, remember senna is a laxative, so there are people who grow it for that. But pigeon pea would be grown for eating, especially in Latin American and Caribbean cuisines.

 

[jbosmith]

Hyacinth beans are edible as young pods. Some are edible as mature seed as well, but usually need to be either leached or cooked in a few changes of water. In general whiter seed coated hyacinths are better for eating mature than darker seed coated ones. Unfortunately, most are also very day length sensitive, so your choices of ones that will mature are somewhat limited.

Hmm my tendency towards forgetting about beans until they're over-ripe and headed to dry seems like a better fit for common beans than these.

That's actually pigeon peas, Cajanus cajan, not senna. Senna is a Caespaloid legume, and doesn't have what one would think of as "typical" legume flowers (if you have ever seen Royal Pochiana, THAT'S a typical Caespaloid flower.)

As for why, remember senna is a laxative, so there are people who grow it for that. But pigeon pea would be grown for eating, especially in Latin American and Caribbean cuisines.

Aha! I've heard of pigeon peas but never seen them. I've heard of senna as a laxative but a 25' long hedgerow of 8' plants seemed excessive

Thanks!