Bean Seed
Language
Some of the terms used in our descriptions of our bean seed.
Cut Short Beans
= A type of bean where the seeds outgrow the hulls
and lock the developing seeds against one another. This makes the bean
seed appear square, rectangular, triangular, or even trapezoidal in
form .
Greasy Beans
= A name given to many heirloom bean varieties when the pods
are slick and without the tight-knit fuzz of other beans. The slickness
makes them appear to be greasy. Greasy beans are widely thought to be
the highest quality beans and are by far the highest priced, bringing
two to ten times as much as other beans.
Cornfield Beans
= Any climbing bean . Corn patches
traditionally served as the poles which beans used for climbing.
Crease Back Beans
= A type of heirloom bean that has a crease in the outer
portion of the bean hull.
Full Beans =
This is a term used to describe a bean where the seed is fully mature
within the hull and the bean is ready to harvest. Heirloom beans are
traditionally harvested at the full stage whether they are to be used
fresh, canned,
Pole Beans =
Same as cornfield beans. When some gardeners stopped growing
corn in their gardens, poles often substituted for corn stalks. They
are often used in teepee style to give stability. More recently poles
have given way to trellises which give more room and more sunshine to
the bean vines.
Shelly Beans
= This term refers to a bean shelled from a mature full bean
before the hull and seed dry out. The beans are then cooked without the
need for rehydration as would be the case with dry beans. Real green
bean lovers always want lots of shelly beans in there green beans.
Snap Beans =
At one time most any bean picked green for eating fresh or
drying would be called a snap bean since, after being strung, they
would snap or break quickly and cleanly. With most commercial beans now
having been bred to be tough and stringless to withstand mechanical
harvesting without breaking, the term snap bean is rarely used since
the modern bean doesn't snap or break cleanly. This is also why so many
are now canned and cooked as whole beans before the seed begins to
develop. However, most heirloom beans picked at the green stage, even
when full, are still snap beans.
BACK TO WRIGHTS
HEIRLOOM BEAN SEED
For list of over
400 early Appalachian Heirloom Green Beans CLICK HERE