2022 Little Easy Bean Network - We Are Beans Without Borders

[meadow]

Some of these beans look as if they experienced a small explosion, so that one end looks rather like a crater. I've never seen anything like it.

The ones that I've retained look pristine but I think the bleach solution is probably a good idea, considering what they were packaged with.

eta: Is this what happens when a bean hasn't been properly dried?

 

[Ridgerunner]

I can grow two seasons down here. The second season is not nearly as good as the first but if I'm trying to stabilize beans it saves me a season. This past "First season" I had one box of beans get moldy. That one had segregated into five different new segregations. I had too many seeds in that box as I was drying them and the weather was really humid. I caught it in time to save others still on the plants so I did get good seed for this year.

I tried to pick out the best of the moldy seeds and planted them for my "second season". One of those segregations did well, four out of five seeds grew and produced. One other segregation produced one plant. The other three did nothing. When I planted the second season beans the weather continued to be really wet, that can affect germination in good seeds, it certainly didn't help. I think even the "best" of the moldy seeds had some mold spores that the wet weather helped grow which greatly affected which ones sprouted and lived.

This is different because you received moldy seeds. I grew my own. I figure that mold is already here. I don't know what the risk is in introducing a new mold from those seeds. Container growing until harvest might be a real good idea. Or at least sprouting them first before you transplant them into your garden to try to avoid holes from unsprouted beans. To be honest, since you received those, I probably wouldn't plant or eat those, they'd go to the landfill.

Some of these beans look as if they experienced a small explosion, so that one end looks rather like a crater. I've never seen anything like it.

Photos please, if you don't mind. Not sure I've seen anything like that. Wonder if they were frozen when still wet.

Is this what happens when a bean hasn't been properly dried?

Yes, they mold. There are mold spores everywhere, they just need temperature and moisture to grow.

 

[flowerbug]

Some of these beans look as if they experienced a small explosion, so that one end looks rather like a crater. I've never seen anything like it.
...
eta: Is this what happens when a bean hasn't been properly dried?

i'd have to see a picture. i've had plenty of oddly shaped beans show up due to our strange and sometimes strained condtions.

 

[meadow]

Sorry folks, they went straight out to the trash. I didn't think to take pictures.

Some had a definite 'explosion from within' sort of a look. Definitely an open crater. I wish that I'd thought to take pictures, darn it.

eta: part of the reason I was so anxious to get them out to the garbage is that the package had other dirt and debri in it and I wanted it out of the house.

 

[Jack Holloway]

Some more beanie questions for growers of the Network seeds.

1. Is there a usual number of seeds in the Network packs?
2. How many of them do people here normally plant?
3. Is it about seed increase first, then food in later years?
4. If there is more than one plant of a variety, do you save seed from many/all plants to maintain diversity in its gene pool? This is provided that all plants are true to type.

I now return you to your regular scheduled program, in progress.
More to come, same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel.

 

[Blue-Jay]

Some more beanie questions for growers of the Network seeds.

1. Is there a usual number of seeds in the Network packs?
2. How many of them do people here normally plant?
3. Is it about seed increase first, then food in later years?
4. If there is more than one plant of a variety, do you save seed from many/all plants to maintain diversity in its gene pool? This is provided that all plants are true to type.

I now return you to your regular scheduled program, in progress.
More to come, same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel.

1. When I get back seed returns in the autumn I break them up into 5 x 12 seeds per packet. Some varieties when they are first aquired might be broken up into 8 to 10 seeds per packet. It can vary. I have had some people return 100 or more seeds of a variety and I have broken up those returns into 20 seeds per packet. So it can vary.

2. That varies also. I would say a lot of growers will grow out between 5 to 10 varieties. I have those rarer growers that might take up to 40 or 50 varieties. They return beautiful seed too.

3. Seed coming back to me gives me a slow increase on most varieties. I store them away in 4 mil ziploc baggies and put them away in a freezer. Those frozen seeds will maintian good germination rates for a very long time. Probablly 20 to 30 years.

4. When I grow out a bean variety. I haverst all the pods first. Shell them out second. Pick out all the reject seeds. Seed that is fairly smaller than the average. Split seed coats, mishappen seed. badly stained third. Then save up to 60 good looking well shaped seed for my future grow outs. Those seeds are also stored in my freezer and nobody gets them. They are my planting seed. The seed harested from my plants are all mixed together after shelling them out. So I'm probably selecting a good cross secton of seed.

Just a little side note. When retrieving seed for a grow out. I allow seed to warm to room temperature before opening any frozen container of seed. I've been told a long time ago that it's not good for seed germiantion to suddeenly expose frozen seed to the air. I've always abided by that rule.

 

[Jack Holloway]

1. When I get back seed returns in the autumn I break them up into 5 x 12 seeds per packet. Some varieties when they are first aquired might be broken up into 8 to 10 seeds per packet. It can vary. I have had some people return 100 or more seeds of a variety and I have broken up those returns into 20 seeds per packet. So it can vary.

2. That varies also. I would say a lot of growers will grow out between 5 to 10 varieties. I have those rarer growers that might take up to 40 or 50 varieties. They return beautiful seed too.

3. Seed coming back to me gives me a slow increase on most varieties. I store them away in 4 mil ziploc baggies and put them away in a freezer. Those frozen seeds will maintian good germination rates for a very long time. Probablly 20 to 30 years.

4. When I grow out a bean variety. I haverst all the pods first. Shell them out second. Pick out all the reject seeds. Seed that is fairly smaller than the average. Split seed coats, mishappen seed. badly stained third. Then save up to 60 good looking well shaped seed for my future grow outs. Those seeds are also stored in my freezer and nobody gets them. They are my planting seed. The seed harested from my plants are all mixed together after shelling them out. So I'm probably selecting a good cross secton of seed.

Just a little side note. When retrieving seed for a grow out. I allow seed to warm to room temperature before opening any frozen container of seed. I've been told a long time ago that it's not good for seed germiantion to suddeenly expose frozen seed to the air. I've always abided by that rule.

Thank you @Bluejay77 . Most informative. Also, thank you for Will's email. I've sent off a message to him. I've found my 2009 SSE Yearbook, so I'll try to get it out from the bottom of the stack without disrupting the stack and check it.

More questions!

1. How many seeds from the "sample" Network pack do you suggest growing? All? Half?
2. Since I have older seed, should I pre-sprout them, so I only plant out viable seed?

 

[Zeedman]

What do you folks do when receiving moldy bean seed?

I've picked out the clean-looking ones. After the 'garlic fiasco' I'm wondering if I should be cautious about introducing them into the garden. Maybe grow some out in containers first?

eta: part of the reason I was so anxious to get them out to the garbage is that the package had other dirt and debri in it and I wanted it out of the house.

The seed was almost certainly exposed to moisture, either before (or less likely, after) being packaged. I'm assuming it was sealed in plastic? Most likely not properly dried. The additional presence of dirt & debris is concerning, since that implies very little concern for proper seed handling - and soil can harbor pathogens or organisms (such as nematodes) which could contaminate your soil.

There are means I could suggest to possibly rescue some remaining seed; but your description of beans being 'burst' implies very deep infection of some sort. If there are other sources for those beans, IMO it would be best to discard them & start fresh... there is still plenty of time before planting. If you still want to save them, then yes, I would recommend first growing the beans in containers - at some distance from your garden - and treating them as contaminated until their performance proves otherwise.

 

[meadow]

The seed was almost certainly exposed to moisture, either before (or less likely, after) being packaged. I'm assuming it was sealed in plastic? Most likely not properly dried. The additional presence of dirt & debris is concerning, since that implies very little concern for proper seed handling - and soil can harbor pathogens or organisms (such as nematodes) which could contaminate your soil.

There are means I could suggest to possibly rescue some remaining seed; but your description of beans being 'burst' implies very deep infection of some sort. If there are other sources for those beans, IMO it would be best to discard them & start fresh... there is still plenty of time before planting. If you still want to save them, then yes, I would recommend first growing the beans in containers - at some distance from your garden - and treating them as contaminated until their performance proves otherwise.

D:

Thank you, I appreciate your input. Would you consider all of the beans from that supplier suspect? There were at least 3 problematic packages (all bush beans), but the others looked fine. hmm. Better safe than sorry. I'll go the container route.

What size container is adequate for growing a few bush beans? I do have larger containers, but I don't want to potentially contaminate a large amount of soil.

 

[meadow]

I didn't mean to sound like I was only thanking Zeedman.

Thank you all for your valuable advise. It is very much appreciated!