If you happen to be around my house most week nights at dinner, you will hear a common phrase at the table: "Pass the beans please." Make no mistake about it, ladies and gentlemen, beans, by far, are my favorite vegetable to grow in the garden.
Last year my wife and I canned more than 85 quarts of beans and put another 25 bags in the freezer. It takes time to preserve my harvest each year. However, in the middle of January we can still taste summer in every jar. That has always brought me a warm feeling on those short, cold days.
Beans belong to the plant family of Fabaceae or Leguminosae. They share their family tree with peanuts, alfalfa, clover, locust and redbud trees. I'm sure some of you already have bean cousins growing in your yard and didn't know it.
Most plants in this family can do something truly amazing. They have the ability to make or fixate atmospheric nitrogen (NH2) into useable plant nitrogen (NH3 and NH4). This means they make their own fertilizer out of thin air. If they would just pick themselves, too, right?
This doesn't mean fertilizer won't need to be added to your bean crop. When I plant my beans, I like to use a quality organic fertilizer. I add the recommended amount according to the label on the fertilizer bag. My personal favorite is Espoma Plant Tone brand.
Beans and their relatives are also used for cover cropping and green manures. Farmers routinely plant soy bean, alfalfa, clover and hairy vetch for livestock forage, as members of the Fabaceae family, they manufacture their own nitrogen.
Once the crop has been harvested, the roots and some of the plant tops are left in the field to break down into a green manure, raising the soil's organic matter percentage and releasing the excess nitrogen the roots have made. After this, excess nitrogen is available to other crops like corn.
The home gardener can use cover crops as well. I have used hairy vetch for years in my raised beds and garden. I like to plant my vetch in late September and till it the following April. Smaller pieces will break down faster in the soil. Before tilling it into the soil, mow down the cover crop. By May 15 or so, you will be ready to plant your garden with free nitrogen and organic matter.
Most of the beans we eat today got their start in the Americas. Native Americans planted what was known as the three sisters. This was maize (corn), winter squash and, of course, beans.
When European settlers arrived in Appalachia, they also started growing beans. Between the geological isolation the hollows provided and with help from the settlers, it didn't take long before new bean varieties were developed.
After the modern age of farming started in the early 1900s, people purchased seeds from mail-order catalogs and stopped growing or saving seeds. This led to a massive decline in bean varieties and genetics. However, Appalachia is still one of the most diverse bean regions in the world.
If you are looking for noncommercial heirloom Appalachian bean seed to grow, look no further than Sustainable Mountain Agriculture Center, Inc. I cannot say enough about what these guys have done to help save the last remaining varieties of Appalachian bean genetics. You can find them at heirlooms.org.
Beans have just as much protein, or more in some cases, than meat. If you are a vegetarian or trying to eat healthier, beans are the way to go. Plus, beans have a ton of fiber. Make sure if you're cooking dried beans to pre-wash them first and boil for at least 15 minutes before consuming.
Some beans when eaten undercooked or raw can be toxic. They have a toxin called Lectin Phytohaemagglutinin that must be cooked out before consuming. Kidney and red beans are two varieties that fall in this category.
If you plan to plant a row or two of beans this summer, they like a soil pH between 6.5 and 6.0. They also love full sun and well-drained soil.
When planting, cut a furrow about 2 to 3 inches deep. Add the seeds and cover with soil. Cut a second furrow next to the first one. The second furrow should be about 4 to 5 inches deep. Next, add fertilizer in a band and cover. Bean seeds can be burnt easily by fresh fertilizer. Adding the fertilizer on the side and a little deeper than the bean seeds will help protect them.
There are two basic types of beans, pole beans and bush beans. Pole beans grow to 6 to 10 feet high and require some type of support. I use netting tied to poles and let the vines grow up them.
Bush beans don't need support and are the better choice for a small garden. Typically, old-fashion heirloom varieties are a pole type of bean. These are my favorite to grow. I think they taste the best.
In my opinion, stringless beans have no business being in a home garden. If you haven't grown pole beans and strung them before cooking and eating them, once you do, your taste buds will never go back to store-bought canned beans.
Chris Postalwait is the agricultural and environmental research station and greenhouse manager for West Virginia State University Research & Development Corporation. He is also the former owner of Orange Vine LLC, a wholesale commercial pumpkin and vegetable farm in Mason County. Contact Chris at postalcm@wvstateu.edu.