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

[flowerbug]

@heirloomgal the cool nights have certainly delayed growth for my earliest plantings, but also the lack of regular rains has made a difference. the plants are still alive so they'll sort it out eventually. i should be seeing some flowers soon on the Purple Dove bean first planting.

 

[flowerbug]

i was scanning my bean patches today and of course i'm hoping the new Purple Dove oddities are going to be interesting beans. i have to verify this tomorrow, but it looks like almost all of them have red stems, except perhaps one bean. have to consult my map tomorrow and double check. [later edit] verified green stems on two plants (the third wilted).

preserving the positive traits of the Purple Dove bean while getting a different seed coat or to pick up some other positive trait that i consider lacking (only a few things really i'd like to change - stickers on the beans and Japanese Beetle magnet are the two traits i'd like to extinguish).

i am hoping no matter what to improve them also by applying selection pressure and perhaps i will make more headway with that than by trying to screen crosses, but at least it is interesting and i'm always game for having new seed coat patterns (that i've not seen on any other beans).

in my list to date of unique seed coat patterns is Yed - unfortunately Yed needs a longer season than what i have here.

 

[heirloomgal]

My pitiful Floreta seeds I collected last year have also sprouted and the plants are starting to climb. Maybe this year I will be able to collect more better quality seeds.

@heirloomgal , we have Genoll de Crist seeds from the same source and it's good to know that there are problems with their germination. They will be under special supervision next year.

Glad to hear your Floreta plants are doing well @Artorius, such a lovely bean! I had zero luck with those last year, it was odd. It barely flowered for me for some reason and never made any pods. But I did have them in a pot, not the ground, so that might have made them upset.

I may have just had bad luck with the Genoll de Crist seeds; starting indoors works great if I can actually get them to sprout. I think they are definitely more prone to rot when sprouted indoors, and bean seed flies are out there lurking too. It's possible they are older and it might explain why they took so long to germinate, but who knows. Nature is a beast and always challenges me & my beans these days.

 

[Zeedman]

I think they are definitely more prone to rot when sprouted indoors, and bean seed flies are out there lurking too.

I think those flies may have been the reason for some of my direct-seeded bean & soybean losses in the rural garden. The seeds of some varieties were planted twice - and appeared to be dead. Germination testing showed that not to be the case though, and I was able to rescue some of those varieties via transplants.

According to Wisconsin AG, seed corn flies (which are the source of the maggots) hatch on a schedule determined by heat degree days:

"Seedcorn maggot overwinters as a pupa in the soil. We can use insect degree-days to predict adult fly emergence in spring. Beginning after ground has thawed, approximately March 1, degree-days are accumulated using the seedcorn maggot base temperature of 3.9°C (39°F). Peak emergence of the first generation of adult flies from the overwintering pupae will occur at 200 degree-days C (approx. 360 degree-days F). Peak emergence indicates that the population is increasing and egg-laying is occurring, thus planting during peak seedcorn maggot fly emergence can increase risk."

The references I found also stated that recently-turned organic matter attracts the flies. When I had problems in 2021, I had just turned under a green manure (the Spring weed hatch) which had not yet decomposed. They recommended to wait at least a 3 week period after material was turned under before planting - which I've been able to do, thanks to this long dry spell.

I previously found a chart (which I will post as an update if I find it) but it lists successive generations of seed corn maggot fly hatches at (in heat degree days):
360F / 200C
1080F / 600C
1800F / 1000C
I'm currently attempting to time my soybean plantings between hatches, and will post any results pro or con.

 

[Eleanor]

@Bluejay77 I remember you mentioning how you use zinnias in your bean patches to "distract" the pollinators - how do you position them - in groups next to the beans, interspersed between, off to the side more away from the beans, or... ? TIA and hope all is well

 

[Eleanor]

I think those flies may have been the reason for some of my direct-seeded bean & soybean losses in the rural garden. The seeds of some varieties were planted twice - and appeared to be dead. Germination testing showed that not to be the case though, and I was able to rescue some of those varieties via transplants.

According to Wisconsin AG, seed corn flies (which are the source of the maggots) hatch on a schedule determined by heat degree days:

"Seedcorn maggot overwinters as a pupa in the soil. We can use insect degree-days to predict adult fly emergence in spring. Beginning after ground has thawed, approximately March 1, degree-days are accumulated using the seedcorn maggot base temperature of 3.9°C (39°F). Peak emergence of the first generation of adult flies from the overwintering pupae will occur at 200 degree-days C (approx. 360 degree-days F). Peak emergence indicates that the population is increasing and egg-laying is occurring, thus planting during peak seedcorn maggot fly emergence can increase risk."

The references I found also stated that recently-turned organic matter attracts the flies. When I had problems in 2021, I had just turned under a green manure (the Spring weed hatch) which had not yet decomposed. They recommended to wait at least a 3 week period after material was turned under before planting - which I've been able to do, thanks to this long dry spell.

I previously found a chart (which I will post as an update if I find it) but it lists successive generations of seed corn maggot fly hatches at (in heat degree days):
360F / 200C
1080F / 600C
1800F / 1000C
I'm currently attempting to time my soybean plantings between hatches, and will post any results pro or con.

@Zeedman what site/resource do you use to determine the number of growing degree days elapsed to date?

 

[Blue-Jay]

@Bluejay77 I remember you mentioning how you use zinnias in your bean patches to "distract" the pollinators - how do you position them - in groups next to the beans, interspersed between, off to the side more away from the beans, or... ? TIA and hope all is well

I plant my Zinnias as the first and last row in a bean garden. But they might be more effective row or two of beans then a row of Zinnias and repeat the sequence.

Japanese beetles like zinnias a bit more than beans except for purple podded beans they go crazy for those.

 

[heirloomgal]

I think those flies may have been the reason for some of my direct-seeded bean & soybean losses in the rural garden. The seeds of some varieties were planted twice - and appeared to be dead. Germination testing showed that not to be the case though, and I was able to rescue some of those varieties via transplants.

According to Wisconsin AG, seed corn flies (which are the source of the maggots) hatch on a schedule determined by heat degree days:

"Seedcorn maggot overwinters as a pupa in the soil. We can use insect degree-days to predict adult fly emergence in spring. Beginning after ground has thawed, approximately March 1, degree-days are accumulated using the seedcorn maggot base temperature of 3.9°C (39°F). Peak emergence of the first generation of adult flies from the overwintering pupae will occur at 200 degree-days C (approx. 360 degree-days F). Peak emergence indicates that the population is increasing and egg-laying is occurring, thus planting during peak seedcorn maggot fly emergence can increase risk."

The references I found also stated that recently-turned organic matter attracts the flies. When I had problems in 2021, I had just turned under a green manure (the Spring weed hatch) which had not yet decomposed. They recommended to wait at least a 3 week period after material was turned under before planting - which I've been able to do, thanks to this long dry spell.

I previously found a chart (which I will post as an update if I find it) but it lists successive generations of seed corn maggot fly hatches at (in heat degree days):
360F / 200C
1080F / 600C
1800F / 1000C
I'm currently attempting to time my soybean plantings between hatches, and will post any results pro or con.

Great info @Zeedman. I really paid attention this year to their cycles as best I could. I was trying to see where the most dicey times to plant were. I did basically three different outdoor plantings, the first and second one I lost a handful to the flies. Each bush bean row lost about one plant, though a few rows were hit harder and I replanted and covered in ashes or coffee grinds. Some had been eaten up as seeds underground, some managed to sprout but had their first leaves eaten underground. The last flush of putting in seeds - where there were holes in rows or on poles - these were the most attacked, mostly the first leaves when underground so they came up as blind sprouts.

One thing I feel 100% certain about, the fresher the seed is the less likely a bean seed fly will plant eggs on it even if it's in their peak hatching time. It is older seed that really seems to be more likely to attract them. Even my Bird Egg Blue seeds from 2019, not that old really, had some losses.

I did an experiment with the last little bean plantings in planter boxes - I covered them with a sheer horticultural fabric and that seem to protect them 100%. I got that idea from a fellow over at seed company Potager Ornamental de Catherine in Quebec, they started losing their bean crops in a huge way to the flies, I think they said nearly 80%. So they have started to do transplants and use horticultural fabric. I will definitely do that next year with the bush beans which I don't want to use transplants with.

I read about the chemical the germinating beans release that to signal to the flies, and it seems that some beans have a more potent chemical emission than others.

eta: I found the culprit for my missing soybeans, including last nights decimation of a row of Maple Glen soybeans. A bear.

 

[Zeedman]

@Zeedman what site/resource do you use to determine the number of growing degree days elapsed to date?

This year I'm using a forecast model for Seed Corn Maggot, with map. I'm searching for a current map of the insect degree days (if that exists). The calculation for seed corn maggot seems to be insect specific. The relevant quote for the forecast: "The population of seedcorn maggot are between generations in central Wisconsin."
Wisconsin Seed Corn Maggot 2023 Forecast

 

[heirloomgal]

Network beans update (plus a few others). It never ceases to amaze me how far along transplants are compared to those I put in as seeds.

I put 2 seeds in ground along with the transplants to try and get at least 4 plants of 'Red Lazy Wife', but they never sprouted so I have 3 instead of 4 around the pole. They look healthy so I think I'll be alright with 3.

This bean is really motoring; I actually hit one of them while pulling the hose and bent/lightly snapped a stem. I thought I would lose it, but by golly it just kept going. Plant is certainly vigorous, I caged it off temporarily from bears and hogs and I'm stuck with it since it's twirling on the makeshift protection now.

Went in as seeds, as I didn't get around to starting transplants with the bonus beans. Such a difference in size!

This network bean is so vigorous, I really like it.

'Weaver' is another network bean that's growing well. Really like the performance of this one too.

Another bonus bean that went in as seeds. So small!

Boy did this bean give me trouble! Didn't sprout in starter pots, kept not sprouting in the ground (or getting eaten by seed flies), replanted twice, and some bug is eating some of the leaves it seems BUT I finally did get some to sprout! This bean is such a beauty.

Semi runners are zooming along. Network bean 'Lusaka' is doing really well.

'Zwolse Paarse' is ready to climb! Sacre Bleu on the other side, planted the day before this one, isn't yet ready.