2026 Little Easy Bean Network – Plant A Garden, Water Your Soul, Join Our Family

[heirloomgal]

I'm not sure if you've heard yet @Blue-Jay but there is - possibly - some good news on the horizon for bean shipments. The friend who helped me get my package to you received an email today from the Zonos team (the App I had to use to deal with the new tariffs and shipping rules to the U.S.). I think he received that because his email account was connected to the shipment, not mine. Anyway, it said that the tariffs imposed under the IEEPA Act (like the ones I waded through with that App) were ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court. U.S. Border and Customs will be issuing information on changes moving forward. So! There might be freedom to once again mail parcels into the U.S. as I used to do. And this will likely affect other network growers trying to mail parcels back to you. I'm hopeful! (Of course this might not be a good thing in the big picture, but for the beans, it might be a win.)

 

[Blue-Jay]

I'm not sure if you've heard yet @Blue-Jay but there is - possibly - some good news on the horizon for bean shipments. The friend who helped me get my package to you received an email today from the Zonos team (the App I had to use to deal with the new tariffs and shipping rules to the U.S.). I think he received that because his email account was connected to the shipment, not mine. Anyway, it said that the tariffs imposed under the IEEPA Act (like the ones I waded through with that App) were ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court. U.S. Border and Customs will be issuing information on changes moving forward. So! There might be freedom to once again mail parcels into the U.S. as I used to do. And this will likely affect other network growers trying to mail parcels back to you. I'm hopeful! (Of course this might not be a good thing in the big picture, but for the beans, it might be a win.)

I have a network grower in Germany that I have not hear from at all. The network grower I have in France messaged me and said he could not mail his package to me because nothing is normal. That was his characterization. I am just assuming it had to do with tariffs.

 

[Blue-Jay]

Russ's 2025 Big Bean Show Day 4​

Aunt Jeans Pole Dry Snap. Suppossedly a Canadian heirloom can be used for both fresh eating and dry. This bean did not do well at all. It produced decent seed but only a handfull or two. It wasn't happy about something.

Badda Nera - This bean was sourced in 2019 from a grower in Willich, Germany. It was in the same boat as Aunt Jeans just producing very small amounts of seed. It was the first time I tried to grow it. The vines seemed to grow well.


Aunt Jeans - Pole Dry Snap.............................Badda Nera - Pole Dry

 

[Blue-Jay]

Russ's 2025 Big Bean Show Day 4​

Batumi Georgia - Pole Dry. This bean also didn't produce much seed but got back the same seed that was planted. I wonder if these beans just didn't have good vigor to produce much seed because of the seeds age. however now I am able to see what the seed looks like fresh. On the left is 2025's new seed and the photo on the right is the seed I had planted.

Batumi Georgia 2 - Pole Dry. Too bad this one seemed only to produce nothing but an off type. I didn't get a single bean that looked like the original. This grow out produced over a pound at 19.7 ounces (558 gm) for 8 plants. The Left Photo is what I planted and the Photo on the Right is what all the plants produced.


Batumi Georgia - Pole Dry 2025...................Batumi Geogia - Old seed



Batumi Georgia 2 - Pole Dry older seed...................Batumi Georgia 2 - 2025 Seed

 

[flowerbug]

@Blue-Jay Those lovely red colored half white beans were ones i tried to grow called Frost (i think they were called ) and i suspected the name indicated they'd prefer cooler weather and we don't often get that here. like you, i got a few seeds that were possible to replant and then tried again and got about the same result or worse so gave up on them. also they were a pole bean so it wasn't a bean i wanted to grow too often.

 

[Dahlia]

Russ's 2025 Big Bean Show Day 4​

Batumi Georgia - Pole Dry. This bean also didn't produce much seed but got back the same seed that was planted. I wonder if these beans just didn't have good vigor to produce much seed because of the seeds age. however now I am able to see what the seed looks like fresh. On the left is 2025's new seed and the photo on the right is the seed I had planted.

Batumi Georgia 2 - Pole Dry. Too bad this one seemed only to produce nothing but an off type. I didn't get a single bean that looked like the original. This grow out produced over a pound at 19.7 ounces (558 gm) for 8 plants. The Left Photo is what I planted and the Photo on the Right is what all the plants produced.

View attachment 79811View attachment 79812
Batumi Georgia - Pole Dry 2025...................Batumi Geogia - Old seed


View attachment 79813View attachment 79814
Batumi Georgia 2 - Pole Dry older seed...................Batumi Georgia 2 - 2025 Seed

Pretty beans!

 

[heirloomgal]

I have a network grower in Germany that I have not hear from at all. The network grower I have in France messaged me and said he could not mail his package to me because nothing is normal. That was his characterization. I am just assuming it had to do with tariff

Yes, that's why. The Canada postal system (and probably many European countries as well) are no longer able mail parcels into the US, because the new tariff system requires a 3rd party. The only role the post office plays now in mailing parcels to the US is as a drop off point. Before these new tariffs, any parcel mailed into the US from Canada was tariff free if it was under $800 and could just be labeled and paid for at the post office, and they send it off. Now tariffs must be paid on basically everything regardless of the value, even a $5.00 packet of seeds. That is not so bad really, but the revenue collection for that was through this Zonos App - not the post office. That is the impossible part because navigating that App is so hard I hired someone to do it for me.

Now it's been determined that applying tariffs to every single package regardless of the value is not lawful, and has been overturned. Will the US post still require us to use the Zonos App? I don't know. I guess we'll see. But if we got back to parcels under $800 being able to move freely across the border again, everybody will be able to go back to mailing you parcels like they always have.

 

[heirloomgal]

Russ's 2025 Big Bean Show Day 4​

Aunt Jeans Pole Dry Snap. Suppossedly a Canadian heirloom can be used for both fresh eating and dry. This bean did not do well at all. It produced decent seed but only a handfull or two. It wasn't happy about something.

Badda Nera - This bean was sourced in 2019 from a grower in Willich, Germany. It was in the same boat as Aunt Jeans just producing very small amounts of seed. It was the first time I tried to grow it. The vines seemed to grow well.

View attachment 79809View attachment 79810
Aunt Jeans - Pole Dry Snap.............................Badda Nera - Pole Dry

I grew Badda Nera last year too @Blue-Jay and had the same results, poor. It was also really, really late. Way too late for my climate but like your plants, my vines were huge, vigorous and healthy. Just not much seeds. I'm letting it go for that reason.