Senga's Blog
Eco-chic Outdoor Living & Exterior Design
Apr. 4/10 Year in Sustainable Garden: The Planning Stage: Dwarf Yellow Butter Bean
Dwarf Butter Beans from New Zealand
Last December we were walking through a Costco like store in New Zealand when I made a bee-line for the gardening section. Searching through the seed packets my chef husband immediately picked out yet another package of beans! For whatever reason he loves to cook them and although no my first veggie pick, I must admit when he makes what he calls ‘squeaky beans’ replete with sliced almonds they are pretty good!
And from a designer’s point these yellow beans will mix perfectly with our purple coloured ‘Royal Burgundy’ and green heirloom ‘Contender’ Bush Beans.
The Skinny on Beans
Fresh beans are a moderate source of beta carotene, protein, dietary fibre, vitamin C, and carbohydrates. Some studies suggest that half a cup of beans per day has a cholesterol-lowering effect in many people. Beans also appear to have a blood sugar normalizing effect, and may be of benefit to diabetics. Lastly, beans make you feel full, and consumption of them may be of benefit in an individual weight loss program.
A Bean is a Bean or Is It?
Who’s who? A pole bean is one that climbs and requires some form of a trellis and a bush bean tends to be short and bush-like. The runner bean tends to be bush-like with three foot runners, a weedy appearance and not as popular for gardeners. All types can also be a snap bean or stringless bean (eaten as a green pod), a shelling bean (the green seeds are cooked like fresh peas), or a dry bean, (harvested when pods are dry with seeds soaked and cooked like navy beans).
Beans are further categorized by pod type. Wax beans are any sort with pods that ripen yellow (like this variety and also called butter beans in New England).
String beans used to have a pod with a tough ‘string’ running down the side of the pod. With selective breeding, most pods no long have this tough fibre, so you can also refer to them as snap beans.
Heirloom Phaseolus vulgaris ‘Dwarf Butter’ Information You Need to Know
Botanical name: Phaseolus vulgaris
Common Name: Dwarf Butter Bean
Country of Origin: Most of the kinds commonly eaten fresh come from the Americas thousands of years ago.
Description: Long, round to slightly oval wax like pods that are yellow and about six inches long at maturity. This bush form maxes out at about 18” tall.
Best harvested: Pick 5-6” for best taste.
Time to Plant: April 1 (after first frost) and plant every 2 weeks as bush beans produce one major crop at one time
Where to Sow and Grow: Outdoors in full sun and put under cloches to mitigate late spring frosts and keeping birds out.
Space: 30cm (12”) apart. I am pushing the limits and sowing 15cm (6”) apart.
Maturity: 50 Days
Tip: Poor germination results from planting too early in cold soil, planting too deep (>30 mm) or mechanical seed damage. Burn or remove spent bean plants as they will most properly have symptoms of mite or rust.
Uses: Raw, almandine, additives to soups, tempura style and four our dog who is highly allergic to everything!Place in Square Foot Garden: On my edible green roof right next to my Peas (see below).
Companion Planting: 'Chiooga' beets Cabbage family, 'Dragon' Carrots, 'Green Utah' celery, Corn, Armenian Cucumbers, 'Fairytale' Eggplant, Heirloom Leaf Lettuce, Marigold, 'Snowflake' Pea, Potato, 'French Breakfast' Radish, Rosemary, Strawberry, Savoury, Tansy, Marigold
