meadow
Deeply Rooted
We've had sun these past two days and a couple more of them in the forecast. The last two Swedish Brown (Network) plants are finally drying down! Dutch Bullet (Network) is nearly done, even for having been started so late.
2022 Little Easy Bean Network - We Are Beans Without Borders
- Thread starter Blue-Jay
- Start date
heirloomgal
Garden Addicted
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2021
- Messages
- 3,637
- Reaction score
- 11,712
- Points
- 235
- Location
- Northern Ontario, Canada
Well, it's finally happened. While shelling pods this evening, I found my first ever home-grown bean cross. I've found crosses in beans from other people's gardens, but never my own. And, as luck would have it, I found it in a bean I really like - Forelle Fleiderfaben/Cranberry Fleider. There were actually two plants crossed I think, because some of the pods are shelling very dark, almost black beans and the other is shelling beans that look like small runner beans with that characteristic speckling. I think I know what bean #2 crossed with -Tarahumara Purple Star. It was close by that year to FF and it's the only P. vulgaris bean I have that has that runner bean speckling. Very interesting! Being a purist as I am, of course seeing a cross is not all good news, but I think this bean may be fun to play with in future grow outs.✨
flowerbug
Garden Master
it's always fun to see what happens next with every odd bean that comes by.
this year i have one bean that did really well but it also had some fun other things going on too like one plant that probably was pole bean habit and i didn't really notice that until it was a bit too late (as i do have semi-runners so having a few new semi-runners show up here or there isn't a surprise). also some of the beans were completely a different color (as in not even close to the original at all).
as another example i had a very nicely shaped olive colored bean and hoped that i was refreshing the seeds when i planted them this season but it looks like the bean wasn't really stable at all and almost everything i planted came back as something else (including a few which might be really interesting but i won't know for sure until a few years have passed and i see how the beans age and if they're stable enough or not).
meadow
Deeply Rooted
What does this characteristic speckling look like? 🧐 (it is news to me that runner beans have this and I'm all ears 😁)
heirloomgal
Garden Addicted
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2021
- Messages
- 3,637
- Reaction score
- 11,712
- Points
- 235
- Location
- Northern Ontario, Canada
Have you grown Scarlet runner beans? They have a fine splatter of black speckles across the body of the bean, sometimes not reaching all the way across. When I get a few more pods I'll post a pic 😀 Pretty!
eta: there is a pic of Tarahumara with that speckling pattern on post #88 in the 2021 bean thread!
meadow
Deeply Rooted
Oh, yes! Somehow I was thinking semi-runner instead of "runner bean." 😅 I grew Sunset runner bean this year to refresh the seed.
Decoy1
Deeply Rooted
No dry pods on Lilaschecke here (east England) yet either. But not far off I think.
- Thread starter
- #1,568
Blue-Jay
Garden Master
- Joined
- Jan 12, 2013
- Messages
- 3,176
- Reaction score
- 9,752
- Points
- 333
- Location
- Woodstock, Illinois Zone 5
I think there is a very good possiblity that you will be bitten by the, I will name and make new bean varieties bug. Especailly when you start finding beans with different patterns and seed colors that are just too beautiful to pass them..... bye ! Reminds me of that old Gloria Gaynor song "Never Can Say Goodbye".
flowerbug
Garden Master
WOW, Something for Ducks to contribute to this conversation.
Victory Seeds sells Purple Dove bean seeds.
I bought tobacco seeds from them recently.
Purple Dove Bush Bean - Victory Seeds®
Beautiful purple pods, five inches long, excellent flavor.www.victoryseeds.com
I noticed that they have a "Victory Points" program where you purchase and earn future gift certicificate codes, or give them to friends and family.
They sell ONLY heirlooms.
on their website they say they are rare and in limited supply, but i've got many lbs of them here and continue to work with them and enjoy growing and eating them.
and now i have you covered as i have the package with the garlic ready to go and included the butterfly weed, milkweed and also on a whim put some Purple Dove bean seeds in there too.
i'll be interested in your review of how well they do in comparison to any other beans you grow.
(also i really like enabling bean lovers everywhere )...
Last edited:
flowerbug
Garden Master
the rains were forecast to be here after 3pm. we had to mow. i didn't start picking beans until after mowing. i got one box full and it was raining on my bean picking parade. total of three boxes out of that garden and probably another three to go but i won't get back in there to pick more until Thursday or Friday.
really what i need to do this time of the year is when people come over tell them that they have to help me pick beans on nice days because it really can't be put aside if i don't want to lose too much of my production. i think it will be ok, but i always worry a bit when it gets rainy this time of the year... my babies! my babies! getting wet!
really what i need to do this time of the year is when people come over tell them that they have to help me pick beans on nice days because it really can't be put aside if i don't want to lose too much of my production. i think it will be ok, but i always worry a bit when it gets rainy this time of the year... my babies! my babies! getting wet!
