2023 Little Easy Bean Network - Beans Beyond The Colors Of A Rainbow

[heirloomgal]

A couple of my network beans are really struggling due to the hot dry summer that we have had, so this morning I was relieved to find a handful of green pods as well as three dry pods on the Van Gogh's Olive semi-runner plants. I cracked open the mature pods and ackkkk!!! The beans are white kidney shaped with magenta pink swirls. The three pods all came from one plant, so I am hoping that the other couple of plants that are still producing will have rounded olive green beans. Heirloomgal, you were growing out this variety as well. Have you harvested your Van Gogh's yet? While it is possible that I screwed up, I am certain that I was especially meticulous with the seedlings of my network beans. Ugh.

Did you plant any Candy beans this year? Those beans look exactly like Candy horticultural beans? I have shelled a small number of the Van Gogh's so far and they all look true to type. Given that both Van Gogh's Olive and Candy are both robust semi-runner's, is it possible that one runner jumped next door?

 

[heirloomgal]

Well, I'm pretty thrilled with how well my bean drying room is working. It's also rodent proof, though I do bring the hound in there at night when I close the outer door to make sure nobody snuck in while the door was open during the day. I can dry tomato seeds in 1/4 the time, and the beans dry down incredibly fast in there too. It's drying the pods so well that I'm regularly hearing popping noises in the boxes, lol. The soybean pods seem pressurized and fling seeds when I crack the seals on them. I have to hold the pods inside a big paper bag to catch them.

Sheesh, what a season! I could not have asked for a more wonderful, bean accommodating summer and the last few days of a mini heat wave have been fabulous for that 'last hurrah' to get some hot drying done on the beans still in the ground out there. It's looking really good that most of the plants will mature, including the direct seeded ones. I'm really happy with the quality of all the beans I've shelled so far. Those network Weaver pods are super gnarly! I've been under the weather the last week and everyone has helped pitch in to go out & collect pods with me, which has been such a huge help. Terrible time to get sick! I've only lost tomatoes and some fruits, no beans, knock on wood.

Will switch to the ipad to post some pics.

Lots more picking to do, but what’s left isn’t crackle dry. With no rain in the next couple days I’m leaving them dry in situ for now.

Some of todays pickings to add to the dry room.

Direct seeded Grandma Gina’s (left) and Garden of Eden (right) finally showing bumps. No frost in the foreseeable future so I’m optimistic they’ll make it. As for the zinnia seeds, no signs of going to seed yet?

 

[jbosmith]

Today's soybeans: Gaia (green/black) and Bei 77-6177 (cream). Roughly the same DTM, though with the soggy soil this year I wouldn't promise that's a given. 77-6177 is taller and more upright where Gaia has more branching.

Panther soy is still making edamame, so I'm not super optimistic about that one for seed.

 

[Branching Out]

Sheesh, what a season! I could not have asked for a more wonderful, bean accommodating summer and the last few days of a mini heat wave have been fabulous for that 'last hurrah' to get some hot drying done on the beans still in the ground out there. It's looking really good that most of the plants will mature, including the direct seeded ones. I'm really happy with the quality of all the beans I've shelled so far.

Lots more picking to do, but what’s left isn’t crackle dry. With no rain in the next couple days I’m leaving them dry in situ for now.
As for the zinnia seeds, no signs of going to seed yet?

So sorry to hear that you are under the weather; not fun I am sure. That is a crazy amount of beans that you have there though-- most impressive. And a quick note that zinnias do not go to seed like other flowers. They just mature, and often remain very similar to the blossom that was. Each petal has a potential seed attached to it. Try tugging on a mature zinnia petal; good chance it will break loose, and you will have a seed in your hand. Often you can feel the embryo if you press down. I highly recommend reading The Zinnia Breeder's Handbook by Tiffany Jones for more information.

 

[Branching Out]

Did you plant any Candy beans this year? Those beans look exactly like Candy horticultural beans? I have shelled a small number of the Van Gogh's so far and they all look true to type. Given that both Van Gogh's Olive and Candy are both robust semi-runner's, is it possible that one runner jumped next door?

Thank you Heirloomgal for assisting with my plight. I have never heard of Candy horticultural beans; I looked them up, and I agree that mine resemble them quite a lot. Last year I grew Bush Tanya's Pink beans in this plot and I was wondering if a seed from last year may have sprouted, however Tanya's Pink bean seeds resemble Kentucky Wonder bean seeds-- in that they are beige and boring.

 

[Blue-Jay]

A couple of my network beans are really struggling due to the hot dry summer that we have had, so this morning I was relieved to find a handful of green pods as well as three dry pods on the Van Gogh's Olive semi-runner plants. I cracked open the mature pods and ackkkk!!! The beans are white kidney shaped with magenta pink swirls. The three pods all came from one plant, so I am hoping that the other couple of plants that are still producing will have rounded olive green beans. Heirloomgal, you were growing out this variety as well. Have you harvested your Van Gogh's yet? While it is possible that I screwed up, I am certain that I was especially meticulous with the seedlings of my network beans. Ugh.

https://www.theeasygarden.com/attachments/img_20230909_112501381-jpg.60390/

This doesn't look like Van Gogh's Olive. Looks just like Candy. Is this bean growing as a semi runner?

 

[Branching Out]

https://www.theeasygarden.com/attachments/img_20230909_112501381-jpg.60390/

This doesn't look like Van Gogh's Olive. Looks just like Candy. Is this bean growing as a semi runner?

I believe it is growing as a semi-runner Bluejay (I am away from home until tomorrow; when I get back I will scrutinize the plant structure more closely).

 

[heirloomgal]

So sorry to hear that you are under the weather; not fun I am sure. That is a crazy amount of beans that you have there though-- most impressive. And a quick note that zinnias do not go to seed like other flowers. They just mature, and often remain very similar to the blossom that was. Each petal has a potential seed attached to it. Try tugging on a mature zinnia petal; good chance it will break loose, and you will have a seed in your hand. Often you can feel the embryo if you press down. I highly recommend reading The Zinnia Breeder's Handbook by Tiffany Jones for more information.

By golly, I tried tugging a petal and it worked. There was a seed attached to the base of the petal. Thank goodness you mentioned this, because I would never have figured that out on my own. I don't think I've ever seen a flower go to seed in such a unique way. Thank you so much!

 

[Blue-Jay]

By golly, I tried tugging a petal and it worked. There was a seed attached to the base of the petal. Thank goodness you mentioned this, because I would never have figured that out on my own. I don't think I've ever seen a flower go to seed in such a unique way. Thank you so much!

And when you have pulled all the petals out of a Zinnia flowerhead and you think you have all the seeds out. Try drying the flower heads so they are really crispy dry. Then rub the flowerhead between your hands until it comes all appart after you have pulled out all the petals and think you have all the seeds. Save that mass you have after you rubbed it between your hands and then next spring at planting time put all that dry material over an area of soil and work it into the soil not really deep but in the surface. Then water it like you are watering new seed and watch hundreds upon hundreds of little Zinnia plants emerge from that dry mass you worked into the soil. There are also other structures in the Zinnia flowerhead the are also seeds.

 

[flowerbug]

found another Painted Pony out-cross this morning when doing some emergency shelling (the pods were starting to go white mold crazy and i wanted to check all of them for viable seeds) before discarding all those pods. this bean looks similar to Monster but crossed with Painted Pony. no idea if this one is edible or not...

it has been damp and cold the past few days but not cold enough to run the heat inside the house so those pods did not dry as fast as i'd hoped. i think i got the worst of them sorted out and shelled or discarded this morning. will check again in the morning. we did run the AC today to get some the humidity out of the house and i hope that helps dry pods a bit faster. i still have a lot of pods to babysit until they are dry enough to go into bigger paper bags.