The 2014 Little Easy Bean Network - Get New Beans On The Cheap

[sea-kangaroo]

Hello everybody! I'm the "lady from California" that traded with journey11. I just joined the Facebook group last night though so Marshall must be thinking of a different Californian (someone whom I'd like to meet!). I've been meaning to post here since my African beans from Russ have finally dried down, but in the three months I didn't look at the board you guys have been posting up a storm so it's taking me a while to catch up!

As far as I know, the various similar-looking purple beans are all breeding lines from Robert Lobitz. Blooming Prairie (named after a MN town, which Robert did for many of his beans) is different in being a dry bean instead of snap, and I think might have smaller seeds but I haven't encountered the others in person so I don't know for sure. It's a real pretty little plant, bright purple-red pods and stems, and mostly bushy but with a couple runners. The Hopi limas are actually called "Hopi Pole" and I think are on the Ark of Taste. Haven't tried those yet myself but I can vouch for the deliciousness of Colored Willow Leaf, Anellino G, and MP B&C.

I'll write more later and share some photos when I get back home to my computer. Journey11, it was a pleasure meeting and trading with you and your daughter. I'm really curious how those teparies do for you. I'm going to have to ask you for descriptions of your beans again at some point since I was pretty sleep-deprived from a delayed flight adventure that morning and a lot of the things I heard Saturday didn't stick with me too well. I just remember "big pods" and "tasty."

 

[897tgigvib]

Howdy Sea Kangaroo,

Oh boy, another person here from the bay area part of california. @ninnymary is too, and I'm about a hundred raven flying miles north in northern lake county.

I'm starting to think that next year's little easy bean network here is really going to soar!

I have maybe a month more of garden this season. Well, completely frosted out or not, I'll finish it early november this year. I have a good amount of winter work to do for my next year garden. GOT TO make more square footage somehow. Also have to dense up my compost soil to help to hold what little moisture I can water it with. Also want to sieve and mix my soil better, add bone meal to it this winter, and got to add diatomaceous earth to it too.

So I should be able to photograph my whole harvest, and then mail out seeds to Russ.

Might have to switch to smaller storage cans from the coffee cans, to fit my shelves.

Yes, I finished off that 5 gallon bucket of coffee!





Welcome and Howdy Sea!

(almost everyone gets a shortened name, lol. You'll like it here. Sometimes we joke around with each other!)

 

[ninnymary]

Welcome sea-kangaroo. I'm not a bean affionado but I do like to follow this thread. I only grow a couple of beans that have to be pretty due to limited space. My preschool kids use those in their art work. I'm in Alameda, where are you?

Mary

 

[Hal]

@sea-kangaroo Welcome to the forum
@marshallsmyth It is starting to grow alright

 

[897tgigvib]

@sea-kangaroo Welcome to the forum
@marshallsmyth It is starting to grow alright

Oh yea!

Hal, your down under garden is probably now just starting to sprout!!!

Howzbout posting some photos of your little bean sprouts for us up here finishing our seasons?

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

Welcome to the gang @sea-kangaroo!

But you've got to know - All TEG members, just like the members of any other gang, need to have a cool nickname. How about Sea-roo, maybe just Roo, just Sea, or Kang?

 

[Blue-Jay]

I still cannot find the information as I lost all my bookmarks but Robert Lobitz obtained seed from Germany I believe and Purple Rain, Blooming Prairie, Purple Diamond and Purple Rose were all closely related.

I think you might be able to add "Viola" to that list of related varieties. I think Robert Lobitz got a lot of beans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture seed banks.

 

[Hal]

Oh yea!

Hal, your down under garden is probably now just starting to sprout!!!

Howzbout posting some photos of your little bean sprouts for us up here finishing our seasons?

I'll get on it, I've got beans flowering at home that I didn't get time to cross pollinate today but I will do tomorrow (they are in pots so I can sit them on the table to do the fiddly work)
I have beans slightly past their first true leaves at home in pots and on my loaned ground I have beans ranging from starting to form bushes/runners down to just emerging and will be sowing another two beds of 50 cultivars per bed this week.

I think you might be able to add "Viola" to that list of related varieties. I think Robert Lobitz got a lot of beans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture seed banks.

Perhaps my memory is off and it was a donation from the German seed bank to the USDA one? I will get to the bottom of it one day.
I have not seen Viola, I even wonder if Purple Amazon is related as the plant is very similar in most traits.

 

[897tgigvib]

Hal, you can cross pollinate beans???

Which ones you crossing?

 

[digitS']

Welcome to the gang @sea-kangaroo!

But you've got to know - All TEG members, just like the members of any other gang, need to have a cool nickname. How about Sea-roo, maybe just Roo, just Sea, or Kang?

Yes, welcome !


Here's some of the TEG gang who are all nicknamed from some bean variety, or other. Yes, I can recognize @BBuckshot even in this early days picture ...

Russ, I really need to shoot the saved seed off to you. I delayed when I saw that you would accept delivery of more than 25 seeds/variety, thinking I should go out to go thru the vines again. I'm not so sure of the wisdom of that after they were covered by a sheet of ice on Friday!

Steve