Beans

[duajones]

Will be picking my first batch of beans today from both Contender and Roma II, 42 days from seed.

[veggie babe]

Send me a mess. For some reason my Mother calls a bowl of beans or peas a mess of peas etc. Guess it is all in the country slang.
Enjoy,

neva

[newatthiskat]

I tried to grow beans last year but didn't have a clue as to picking. We had hard rains for a while and they all rotted and died. Maybe next year I will learn more.
Kat

[swimgymmom]

Kat,

Beans are pretty easy to pick. Depending on the variety depends on how big they get before you pick them. I grow Provider and boy do they provide! I can pick them when they are really young, about 3-4" long or even wait until they are about 6-7" long and they are still tender. If you wait until you start to see a "buldge" in the bean where the seeds inside are starting to mature, they can get kind of tough. We can about 100 quarts a year and have multi sized beans in our jars; Sometimes it just depends on weather or when you can get out there and pick them.

All of that to say it just depends on what you like as to when to pick. Try a little of each size and see what you like. Hope things work better for you next time.

Kim

[newatthiskat]

thanks for the tips Kim. I will try again next year. I am growing so many new to me things this year that my head is swimming
Kat

[duajones]

Well, beans have become one of the things I look forward to most. And at this point, I havent met a bean that I didnt like. I have only grown 6 varieties at this point and have really liked each one although I didnt have much luck with Kentucky Wonder pole beans. And Blue Lake bush were probably my worst performer to date. This years crop have both performed well and until recently were neck and neck as far as production goes. I might give Roma II a slight edge in taste but Contender has kicked it in to another gear as far as production goes. And instead of only eating them fresh and giving away what I dont eat. I am actually blanching and freezing some this year. I miss them so much once they are gone.

[sfmathews]

I'm with you on that! Normally, the first few don't even make it out of the garden, I eat 'em right there!
Fresh steamed green beans and sliced maters, mmmm hmmmmmm!

[Amigatec]

The only beans I grow are Roma II, I just love them.

[duajones]

Roma II are awesome beans no doubt. The person that recommended them to me was TV member Earl Cadenhead, the one known for Earl's Faux and also Earl's hole method of planting. It has performed well for me the couple of times I have grown it and is a great bean period. I like Dragons Tongue beans real well also. My neighbors (man and wife in their late 70's), whom have been a recipient of both the past couple of years had great feedback on both varieties. With Dragons Tongue it was"They werent very attractive looking but they tasted great, my wife and I really loved them" and of course they had never seen a bean like that. With the Roma II's there comment was " Never grown a flat bean before but this one tasted better than most I have grown , where did you get the seeds?"
Again, I have never met a bean I didnt like but then I have only just begun

[habitat_gardener]

The best-tasting bean I've grown is La Vigneronne. Someone left the pack of seeds at the community garden. It's a half-runner, green with purple mottling, sweet and tender. The seed packet was in French, I don't recall the supplier -- I took a few seeds and left the rest of the pack -- and I haven't found them online.

[duajones]

Well, I guess I spoke too soon. The plants look great but production has just about come to a halt and there isnt much in the way of flowering going on. I am now wondering if I should go ahead and pull them to make way for the okra or give them a little more time. Roughly 60 plants with around 30 of each variety and I have harvest around 4 gallon bags from Roma II and close to 5 from Contender.

[Suze]

Duane, are you growing pole or bush for the Roma II?

Picked over 1.5 pounds of Dragon Tongue today from a 3x6 area. Hopefully I can get a couple more weeks out of them, but it just got hot so early here this year, sigh.

[duajones]

Roma II and Contender are both bush varieties. I will give them a little more time as they do look great. Okra is standing by waiting to be transplanted

[Tormato]

Duane,

You might want to try this...

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/l...585814315.html

Gary

[duajones]

Thanks Gary, I saw that and would like to try it sometime. I may even build another raised bed for next year so I dont have to wait on anything. I do need to get the okra in the ground soon