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Post by glen on Nov 5, 2017 15:40:58 GMT -6
Today I cut the first pod. We have been having rain lately and this one particular pod began to deteriorate and get moldy and black. Its wet outside. I decided it would be best to cut the pod and let the seed finish curing inside. There was only 2 sedes. Seeds are White in color in the shelly stage of development. I asume that when they mature they turn into their dry color which is an Antique White or ivory color. The actual good news today is that there is a different vine with 2 pods that show 5 sedes. This is real good news. I dont think all this rain we have been getting is good news for this variety of pole bean. It doesn't seem to like tropical rains or high temps combined with high levels of moisture and humidity. Seeing the 2 pods with 5 sedes in each is very encouraging because it means that reaching my 50 seed goal is doable and reasonable with this rescue Project. I will be glad to finish with it and get those sedes shipped back to George. I need a better adapted variety of pole bean to call my own.
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Post by glen on Nov 9, 2017 16:00:43 GMT -6
There are a lot more pods that are showing and developing on the vines. When they mature they turn purple. It appears that I am going to have a lot more pods than originally expected. They come very slow. As time goes on the vines are producing better pods with more seeds. Longer. Appears to be more seeds in these later pods. I might get amazed and actually produce many more seeds than expected. There is still no where near enough pods for eating purposes. But, if I can make plenty of seeds that would be excellent. So far I have 4 seeds inside the house maturing. But, there appears to be a lot more that will be coming later.
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Post by macmex on Nov 10, 2017 6:15:00 GMT -6
That's really great Glen! Eventually we'll get this bean to the point that it's not in danger of extinction, and even find it a home where it flourishes!
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Post by glen on Nov 10, 2017 10:51:18 GMT -6
I think its great also George. I was worried there for awhile. I was able to bring in another bean pod today that is in the shelley stage and harvested 4 more big white seeds today. They are drying on a plate and will be much smaller and get that antique white color later. I also noticed many more small pods today that are now easier to see, maybe an inch or a tiny bit more in length. The plants are allowing 2 pods to develop on a branch now which is different and the pods are now longer. I see quite a few that have 5 seeds developing in them. There might even be some with 6 seeds in them coming. This variety is finnicky. Early on the vines aborted all blossoms. Now, more are going to make pods. I do not know what has changed. There still isn't enough to make a mess for the kitchen but thats ok. Two pots still have vines that have not even started making pods yet. They will come later. This variety takes forever to develop and make pods. Patience is required. Its hard to have patience when you see vines full of blooms and they all abort. Especially if its the first time you have really grown this variety. The plan remains for now. All seeds will be saved and stored away with the goal of finding a worthy gardener who will adopt this rare bean. I think it will be cool. The seeds will store well in the freezer I hope, until we can find a home for it.
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Post by glen on Nov 12, 2017 15:51:05 GMT -6
I have looked back on this thread and saw that the 2 vines I have that are putting on the most pods right now are the oldest vines which are now about 3 and a half months old. Those vines where amongst the original seeds I planted. I had them planted in a bad spot and had to pull them away from the old trellis to make room for the new fence. 4 vines that were growing croaked. That was a bad set back. However, I replanted about 2 months ago and left those original survivors. There is only one vine so far that has produced seed. There is another that will produce seed in a week or so. Those 2 original vines will produce a good quantity of seed. I already have 12 seeds indoors on a saucer curing. All from this one vine. Thats not much. Things happen real slow with this project. I wish I could foresee how many seeds will be produced later but I can't. Its going to be far more than the original 50 that I detailed as a goal. The one vine that is producing seeds now still has about 10 pods in different stages of growth on the vine. Maybe more. Once the other vines kick in I will have a large number of seeds. Good news. I just hope the seed is good. The hope is that if I can send George a nice bunch of this seed maybe he will send me some of that good Cherokee pink seed he likes so much.
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Post by glen on Nov 23, 2017 13:17:06 GMT -6
Today I picked about 5 pods that were beginning to change color and turn brown. I removed the seeds and have them drying. There is now a total of 41 seeds. This is just the beginning of the harvest. Slowly but surely I will continue to pick pods as the days go by. As I said, I do not know how many seeds there will be but it will be hundreds I do believe. Only a few pods so far has yeilded 41. I am quite sure that I will have enough for a good stash for myself so I can keep experimenting with this bean and still have plenty to send to OK. Very good news. We need enough so we can sew seed and still have some left for next time. We never want to be down to last seed with this finicky but rare variety of pole bean.
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Post by glen on Nov 25, 2017 10:12:04 GMT -6
When picked as a shelley, this bean is beautiful shiny brilliant white. As it dries it takes on a tan. The seeds get much smaller and slowly get this tannish patina. I looked in the freezer to examine the original seed. It is so tan now it is almost brown. The seed is still good but it looks completely different taking on an almost copper color. Well, I am assuming that the seed is still good. I used that seed to grow my vines that are outside now. They don't even look like the same variety of pole bean. The original seed was recieved by me in 2015. I hope this seed can be saved for long periods of time in the freezer. I do not know much about this pole bean. I have never tried eating it. And, I need to try growing this pole bean during the dry season in a better soil mix. This pole bean has specific requirements I do believe in order to grow and produce well and actually set fruit. I think next time I grow this bean I am also going to have a few red bean vines so I have something to compare it with. Is it the variety that is giving me problems? Or, my methods? Or, both?
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Post by glen on Nov 29, 2017 15:54:01 GMT -6
Every couple of days I am out there cutting beans off the vines. They are not totally dry. They are in the shelley state. I shell them and let them dry indoors. I read somewhere that this is ok to do this. In a couple of days the seeds get much smaller and get a hard coat and begin to get that antique patina. I have not germ tested this seed. I do need to do a germ test I suppose in the future. I have way over 100 seeds now all curing in a saucer. I expect to have hundreds of seeds. This variety of pole bean does not set all its pods at one time. It sets them when the vines want to set them. They put on blossoms quickly and if you have no experience with this pole bean you will think you are about to get a bumper crop of beans. However, this is not the case. The vines abort blooms and set fruit when the conditions are right for the vine. I do not know what those conditions are. However, I suspect that the vines do. Now that I have been growing this variety for over 4 months I can see that the vines are indeterminate. I still see pods in various stages of development. I still see lots of blooms also. The vines put on fruit, or pods slowly, sometimes in higher quantity's and continuously. I have 10 vines. Its not enough to provide much for my kitchen. I don't know how many vines I would need? Maybe 30? Then I would probably have a useable quantity of pods and shelley beans to use in the kitchen. The shelley's are white and fat and attractive. I can see where they would be useful for adding to soups and stews. I really need to reserve judgement before I make the determination that this variety of pole bean has no place in my garden.
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Post by glen on Nov 29, 2017 16:08:32 GMT -6
I counted the seeds in the saucer. There are 139. I suppose you are wondering doesn't Glen have better things to do with his life? I am retired Ok? We are going to have hundreds and hundreds of seeds!! I was real apprehensive at first but now that some time has passed I can see that we are going to have all the seed we are going to need to rescue this pole bean. There are probably another hundred pods out there now that will be ready to harvest fairly soon and also many tiny pods plus lots of blooms still as well. Some of those pods are producing 7 or 8 seeds. Like I said, there will be plenty.
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Post by glen on Dec 1, 2017 13:55:12 GMT -6
Today we now have over 200 seeds. There are still a lot more to come. Fairly soon I will germ test some of this seed to see if it is viable. The original seed I have has a very high germination rate so I hope this new seed is just as good.
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Post by glen on Dec 3, 2017 11:30:28 GMT -6
Ron, it looks like I am going to be able to start sending some of this seed to you guys fairly soon. I don't want to wait too long since it is now taking 2 and a half months or more for an envelope to reach you. I hope you get to try growing some of this seed so we can get a seed stock built up on it. The problem is getting the seed produced before the winter takes it.
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Post by glen on Dec 8, 2017 13:24:42 GMT -6
Ok, George and Ron, I have an envelope full of oahacan bean seed ready for both of you to be sent by mail on Monday, December 11, 2017. It could take 2 or 3 months to reach you or it may not reach you at all. There are 30 sedes in each envelope. I guess the Project was a success on my end at least. I will have a cache of seeds very soon in my freezer also. George, Ron will be recieving the sedes so it will give you an excuse to go over to his to visit once they reach him. Good luck.
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Post by glen on Dec 9, 2017 11:52:16 GMT -6
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Post by glen on Dec 9, 2017 12:36:10 GMT -6
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Post by glen on Dec 9, 2017 12:40:18 GMT -6
The last photo shows the latest seeds I have saved. There is going to be much more than I originally thought since production of pods did not start until the end of the vines cycle. I still do not know how many seeds I will have but it will be many hundreds. So you will know, George and I are seeking to meet someone who is interested in growing out this variety of pole bean. If it grows well we hope this person will adopt it and grow it every year and also share seed with others who are interested. I don't consider this variety a beginners bean. We welcome you to make an inquiry. Please click on the foto's to see enlargements. The seed is extraordinary and beautiful. This variety is worth rescuing since it is a greasy bean and obviously it is an old Indian heirloom variety. Very Rare.
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