chip sanft wrote:That's weird that nobody else has beans that break open. Could the birds be getting to ours? Hmm. Or maybe I'm just lazier than everyone else and it takes longer for me to get to them...
Wes Hunter wrote:I've never had too much trouble with dry pods popping open (though it does happen--dependent on variety, I think), but I have found that dry pods that get rained on are quite likely to discolor and/or develop mold. And in my experience the beans will mature over the course of a few weeks, anyway. The same will be true of the squash, and the corn for that matter, so it's not as though you'll have one or two "harvest days" and then be done. Point being, I think you're just going to have to deal with getting in there and stepping carefully and harvesting things as they're ready.
Turkey Craw is a good cornfield bean too, for what it's worth. I've found them to be very productive. We also grew Genuine Cornfield, Cherokee Cornfield, and Good Mother Stallard last year; all did well.
Brandon Greer wrote:As far as yield goes, how did Turkey Craw compare to Genuine Cornfield? I'm reading that Turkey Craw is 80 - 100 days. I'm guessing that the low end is for greens and the high end for dry? Did you leave any for dry beans and if so about how long did they take to reach that point?
Maureen Atsali
Wrong Way Farm - Kenya
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Wes Hunter wrote:
Brandon Greer wrote:As far as yield goes, how did Turkey Craw compare to Genuine Cornfield? I'm reading that Turkey Craw is 80 - 100 days. I'm guessing that the low end is for greens and the high end for dry? Did you leave any for dry beans and if so about how long did they take to reach that point?
The Turkey Craw seemed a lot more productive on a yield-per-foot-of-row basis, but it's kind of hard to say because I didn't keep records, and the fact that I'm a really inadequate weeder could disproportionately affect yields. That said, the Genuine Cornfield were planted right next to the Turkey Craw, so direct environmental factors will have been largely the same. The Turkey Craw at least left me with the impression that they were really teeming with pods, whereas I can't say the same for any of the others. I'll say, too, that I have noticed significant differences in plant growth in a quite small space in our garden (different soil types), so that could be a factor, though if it was an obvious one last year I didn't make a note of it. In short, apparently: gee I don't really know.
We ate some as green beans, but most were left to dry. I don't recall exactly how long it took, except that the Turkey Craw seemed to mature over a considerably longer period, and even after harvesting dry beans off some vines I was harvesting green beans off others. There were some Genuine Cornfield that matured relatively early, but most seemed to hang on the vine forever before they finally dried.
Maureen Atsali wrote:I do 3 sisters, but I have never tried to line up varieties for a simultaneous harvest. I usually go in and harvest beans first, then maize, and lastly squash. And we eat leaves from the squash all season long, as one of our favorite green veggies. So we walk through the plot all the time. Even if we accidentally step on a vine here and there it doesn't seem to deter or harm the squash, which tend to put down extra roots along the way anyway.
I couldn't leave my beans out. I also seem to have the varieties that break open and drop their seeds if left too long. And mildew and insects also become a problem when left on the field.
Maureen Atsali
Wrong Way Farm - Kenya
Brandon Greer wrote:I read that the Genuine Cornfield is very much like a pinto bean. How would you describe the taste and use of Turkey Craw? Sorry for all the questions.
Maureen Atsali wrote:Brandon, I plant in lines. I drop in maize seed every 18 inches or so, beans every 6 inches, and squash every three feet. Lines are about 2 feet apart. During the first weeding I mound up the soil along the lines a bit. I put everything in the ground at the same time. I can, because I am in the tropics. The type of beans I prefer aren't as viney as a traditional pole bean. They still climb, but are more compact, so they don't out pace the maize. Mostly the beans tangle around the maize, and the squash run amuck where they please. So the isles between the rows are sort of passable.
Maureen Atsali
Wrong Way Farm - Kenya
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