Anybody Plant Pole Beans?

[JackE]

That's a really good idea, Maupin! The visibility factor is a major problem - with sugar snaps too. There's only one drawback - as you may have gathered from my earlier posts, 90% of our clientele wouldn't eat a purple string bean , or a long bean (tried some asparagus beans once and they all came back home - looked "funny: to them - thought they were immature cowpeas). There are so many good veggies they won't touch - spinach, broccoli (one "c" and 2 l's or vice versa lol), eggplant, any turnip that's not purple, any tomato that's not round and red, any squash that's not yellow, any lettuce besides iceberg etc etc.

Most irritating of all, they reject anything that doesn't look like store produce. Our carrots, for example, always have some dark coloration on them, not perfectly orange and spotless like Wally World - something to do with our soil, I guess, or maybe our washing process - anyway, we had to quit growing them because we couldn't give them away to our people.

The older, local country folks are dying out and HUD has moved a lot of people from the Houston projects up here to achieve integration. They are totally urban in orientation and we have enough trouble to get them to eat anything besides Big Macs, cokes and chips - and trying to get the young people to come to church. The idea was to get our young people to influence them in a positive way - but the opposite seems to be happening. Our young people are picking-up THEIR language and culture (and eating habits) instead!

Jack

[habitat_gardener]

Originally Posted by JackE

...90% of our clientele wouldn't eat a purple string bean , or a long bean (tried some asparagus beans once and they all came back home - looked "funny: to them - thought they were immature cowpeas). There are so many good veggies they won't touch - spinach, broccoli (one "c" and 2 l's or vice versa lol), eggplant, any turnip that's not purple, any tomato that's not round and red, any squash that's not yellow, any lettuce besides iceberg etc etc....

Have you tried getting some of those folks into the garden to help out? At school gardens, kids are eager to eat what they've grown even if they wouldn't touch anything green at home. It's possible it could work for adults.

Even CSAs (where you pay ahead of time for a weekly box of produce from a farm) have found they need to include recipes with their produce. Their customers are willing to try new things, but they don't know what to do with produce that looks unfamiliar.

Or have you tried hosting one dinner that's cooked for them? Or having cooking classes? Then they could see that purple beans become green when they're cooked.

I think that many people just don't know how to cook or they think it's hard. They're especially afraid of vegetables. The USDA has some educational materials about eating different colors of fruits and vegetables. For instance, this page lists a lot of free (mostly) resources.
http://fnic.nal.usda.gov/nal_display...ment_default=0

[JackE]

Those are super ideas and we have already made some efforts to expand our project in that direction. We have discussed a community garden on church property, but we are 8 miles outside of town.

We certainly can provide printed recipes at the vegetable stand (which is in town). I know we need to do more outreach than simply providing produce, and I'm going to pass-on your excellent ideas at our next business meeting. We have a close working relationship with a black church closer to town and I'm sure we could use their kitchen facilities and count on their support and assistance It's certainly feasible, IF we can get those who need it most to come!

We are working very hard to integrate all of our churches, and we are succeeding, but it's a slow process. Everyone wants it, but there are cultural differences that have nothing to do with race - ESPECIALLY preferences and tastes in music! That's a hard one to overcome. We are now presenting music programs on sunday night at each other's churches - we jazz-up our redneck music and they slow down their gospel a little. Some day we'll get it right! LOL Afterwards we all eat and fellowship together. For someone my age, who remembers the past, it's a beautiful thing!!

Thanks again for you interest and helpful suggestions,

Jack

[tjg911]

jack you said the purple pole beans would be great as they would be easier to find, i've grown them and they are, but that folks would look at purple pole beans like they are from mars. why not cook a plate and put them on display, show people they look like the beans they are used to seeing and eating because all the purple beans i've grown always turned green after being cooked. just a thought cuz it sure it easier finding purple beans in all that green leaf!

[JackE]

It sure would be easier - but I'm pretty sure, based on lots of experience here, that the typical reaction would be, "let's just go over to Wal-Mart and get some regular beans." Anything different or off-the-wall just won't fly. Maybe if they are literally starving....:-)

How come y'all don't use first names around here instead of those hard-to-remember pseudonyms? I can't tell the gender of people. Maybe I'm old-fashioned, but I like to know if I'm addressing a lady or a man.

Jack

[tjg911]

i'd say from my experience on different forums that this place is about the same as any other as far as the screen names. some people like to use their name and some prefer something else. when i 1st started i used my name for a reason and i've stuck with it most places. however in recent years i use different screen names specifically to not be known especially at financial forums.

tom

[beefyboy]

I second the rattlesnake choice!!. In Florida it stays tender and stringless and easy to see with your eyes. As far as Italian beans go, try the company seeds of change for a nice selection of the finest pole beans I have ever tried. Ana Marie vining has a taste to die for!!

[JackE]

Thanks for that - I've been leaning toward rattlesnake for mid-summer.It's pretty common around here - the old timers will recognize it.
Varieties that do well in Florida generally do well here - same hot, humid climate.

Jack

[stormymater]

I like these good folks too -

http://www.southernexposure.com/snap..._5_213_69.html

[JackE]

I have bought seed from them - Charleston Belle peppers with nematode resistance. They didn't do well for us at all.

We buy most of our seeds from Clifton Seed Co and some from Twilley. I prefer treated seed - especially with the brassicas.

Jack

[stormymater]

Oh, ho ho! Clifton is practically neighbors!

[JackE]

Fine Company, wonderful people! They have been very helpful to us and supportive of our project. We deal mostly with the branch in Moultrie, GA

[Ozark Organic]

My Rattlesnake pole beans stop producing in the hottest part of summer, but I keep them alive, (sometimes they lose most of their leaves if the weather is really blazing for a long time), and they put on a huge fall crop. Plant them early so you get a June crop before it gets too hot. Then keep 'em watered no matter how bad they look. They'll come back in the fall and go crazy.

Pole beans are much easier to pick than bush beans, and you get much more bean for your space. We also use the t-posts and wire trellis raised about 16" off the ground. You are right, training the vines to the trellis can be a pain. But, it's a one time thing, with a little maintenance now and then. And, when the vines get tall and hang back down you can walk under the overhang to pick. Either way, you'll be a happy harvester compared to bush beans!

[JackE]

Thanks so much for that valuable info. I didn't know that and would surely have taken them out when they quit making. These are KY Blue pole beans, not Rattlesnake, but act the same way I guess?

It gets a lot hotter here, for a longer period, than up there though. In any case, We'll keep watering them and see what happens.

Thanks again, Jack

[Ozark Organic]

I have not grown Kentucky Blue. In my experience, Kentucky Wonder is less heat tolerant than Rattlesnake. Last year we had a summer to rival some of yours (I live in southern Missouri, almost in Arkansas). It heated up to the 90's and 100's in early June and we did not get a break (high 80's)until late August. The humidity was bad for us, too. I harvested no Kentucky Wonders until fall, but did get a crop of Rattlesnake in late June/early July before they gave it up until September.

It was too hot for the cow peas and limas, too. Only the okra, sweet potatoes, and some peppers were happy.
Too bad your customers won't eat Yard Long Beans. They produced prolifically all summer for us.

When our summers are not so blazing the Rattlesnake produce non-stop, but the Kentucky Wonders always take a break.