I am gradually shelling out my Fabes de la Granja Asturiana which I grow for the Heritage Seed Library. These are a good sized white Climbing French Bean and are wonderful with chorizo in Spanish tapas style dishes. I kept enough seed back last year to grow some for myself as well as the 30 plants I grow for them.
However, I shelled out some of my Moonlight self fertile runner beans last night. They are the beans on the left of the picture, the Fabes being on the right (50p for scale). As you can see, the Moonlight are a chunkier bean and I intend to taste a few as a drying bean. I know the Fabes have an excellent flavour but I have only eaten the Moonlights as a green bean - they have the ridged, rough surface and flat pod of a typical runner bean. I can feel a Fair Test coming on! Next year I will grow a wigwam of each and compare yield as dried beans. You can't tell at the moment as the Moonlight have been heavily picked for fresh eating so the bean haul will not be particularly high.
I have brought my chillies indoors onto the windowsill to see if I can keep any plants going through the winter. These two plants were both grown from seed of Thai Bangkok Upright which I obtained from a local seed saver. You can see that the ones on the left are upright and a little thicker but those on the right are definitely downright! Chillies are notoriously promiscuous - I never save chilli seeds unless I am growing only one variety. That's usually Cayenne because I like the amount of heat they give and know how many to add for what purpose. The first of the long thin 'downrights' went into a casserole on Thursday and was barely in evidence. It doesn't seem to be a very hot one at all.
I am gradually shelling out my Fabes de la Granja Asturiana which I grow for the Heritage Seed Library. These are a good sized white Climbing French Bean and are wonderful with chorizo in Spanish tapas style dishes. I kept enough seed back last year to grow some for myself as well as the 30 plants I grow for them.
However, I shelled out some of my Moonlight self fertile runner beans last night. They are the beans on the left of the picture, the Fabes being on the right (50p for scale). As you can see, the Moonlight are a chunkier bean and I intend to taste a few as a drying bean. I know the Fabes have an excellent flavour but I have only eaten the Moonlights as a green bean - they have the ridged, rough surface and flat pod of a typical runner bean. I can feel a Fair Test coming on! Next year I will grow a wigwam of each and compare yield as dried beans. You can't tell at the moment as the Moonlight have been heavily picked for fresh eating so the bean haul will not be particularly high.
I have brought my chillies indoors onto the windowsill to see if I can keep any plants going through the winter. These two plants were both grown from seed of Thai Bangkok Upright which I obtained from a local seed saver. You can see that the ones on the left are upright and a little thicker but those on the right are definitely downright! Chillies are notoriously promiscuous - I never save chilli seeds unless I am growing only one variety. That's usually Cayenne because I like the amount of heat they give and know how many to add for what purpose. The first of the long thin 'downrights' went into a casserole on Thursday and was barely in evidence. It doesn't seem to be a very hot one at all.
5 comments:
Must admit I've never grown beans to eat as dried beans - it's always been something I've been a bit nervous about
Nothing to be nervous about Sue. They are a fantastic resource in the winter when fresh food (apart from greens!) is scarce. It's nice to feel you are still eating home-grown.
I haven't grown dried beans before either, but I'm definitely trying it next year. Trail of Tears doesn't have a very fleshy pod so that might be one to go for, and Major Cooke is supposed to be a good one. The wife uses dried beans regularly so she'd be glad of them.
I think if I could only grow one Robert, it would be Bird's Egg. Do you have some - or would you like some?
Looks like a chilli con carne is on the menu then?
I bring my chillis indoors too, they usually ripen well on a windowsill.
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