My favorite veggies in my garden are always my beans. As I mentioned in a previous post, I bought heirloom bean seeds from Seed Savers this year and planted my beans in early March, transplanting them into my vegetable boxes last weekend.
Choosing my beans was a difficult choice this year because there were so many in Seed Saver’s catalog! I wanted delicious flavor and variety. I don’t think there was a wrong answer. I loved the description of each bean – they each have personalities and histories just like people. So I wanted you to officially meet my beans.
Provider bush beans
Introduced in 1965 by horticulturist Dr. Hoffman of the U.S. Vegetable Laboratory in South Carolina. Known as the most dependable early green bean. Round straight pods (5-8″ long) borne heavily on compact plants. Excellent flavor, one of the best for freezing and canning. Germinates well in cool soil. Disease resistant. Bush habit, snap, 50-55 days. ±1,200 seeds/lb.
Empress bush beans
Introduced by Gurney’s in 1979 as Experimental Bean 121 and later re-named Empress. Incredible flavor. Our very best snap bean for fresh eating, freezing, or processing. Heavy yields of large, straight, green, 5-6″ stringless pods. Bush habit, snap, 55 days. ±1,500 seeds/lb.
Kentucky Wonder bush beans
(aka Improved Commodore) Selected from Kentucky Wonder pole bean. A standard for the home and market gardener. Tender, stringless, round, fleshy 8″ pods have fine quality and excellent flavor. Heavy yields over an extended period. Bush habit, snap, 65 days. ±900 seeds/lb.
Ideal Market pole beans
Introduced to the seed trade in 1914 as Black Creaseback by Van Antwerp’s Seed Store of Mobile, Alabama. Reintroduced in 1924 by Chris Reuter Seed Co. of New Orleans, Louisiana as Reuter’s Ideal Market. Very early and productive 5″ snap bean. Excellent quality, stringless, fine texture. Pole habit, snap, 65-70 days. ±1,900 seeds/lb.
French Climbing pole beans
This was once the most widely grown French climbing bean in England according to The Beans of New York (1931). Lilac flowers, 4-7″ stringless pods. Excellent fresh eating qualities. Shiny dark purple seeds. Pole habit, snap, 65-75 days. ±800 seeds/lb.
Of course I’ll be evaluating them to determine which ones will return to my garden next year. If their estimation is correct, we should begin eating them the first two weeks of June!
