Wednesday, July 13, 2011

For Cali on Peanut Beans

Hey Cali, here is the post I promised. On your Crooked Neck Squash, try putting some Epson Salts on them. This is what we use on tomatoes and other plants if them show forms of rot.

A Peanut bean, also called Old Joe Clark bean is a small green bean, absolutely delicious. Every year I say I'm not going to grow them, then we hit that last quart and I cave in. Denise is done 14 quarts today and tomorrow maybe another 11. Our pressure canner does 7 quarts so I'll pick some of the Turkey Crawl beans to make up the rest. My first successful (?) year at getting them. For two 100ft rows normally they would be better but with the way this year and weird weather has been, I'm pleased. Not as good as I usually do but better than I expected. Peanut beans are a bush green bean, though I run lines to try and keep them as erect as possible. They do have to be stringed which is also a pain given the small size.
The beans shown are from 2009. Left to Right, Peanut, Greasyback, 1/2 White Runner, State, Rattlesnake.   I think you can click on it to make it larger.

This is what they look like when growing They are the two rows on the right. Last year we had the most beautiful vines, but few beans. These look so-so but have done better. Our Tomatoes and some of the Cabbage have done well considering 2 hail storms, it cut off most of the Onions, Garlic made it through though. We have the prettiest Pepper Plants we've ever had. They'd be even prettier if they had peppers, lol. Don't give up, I think it's the weather we've had these last 2 years.

  Peanut Beans are the best tasting green bean we've ever eaten. They are an heirloom bean. The draw backs to them are it seems like your not getting anywhere when you pick them and even less when you break them, lol. I do ours a bit different. Some people pull their plants up and take off the beans. I do a 1st picking and try and train the plant to stand back up while also weeding what weeds are there. Then later I do a 2nd picking, leaving the pods that aren't ready. The remaining ones I leave to mature out and when I pull the plants then I keep them for seeds.

  This is my 2nd year attempting Turkey Crawls and probably my last, unless something changes. Personally I'd rather do Rattlesnake , but Denise don't like them.

Here is a video of our gardens.