(Via washingtonpost.com - A Cook's Garden by Barbara Damrosch)

Posted by admin to A, Bean, Praise, Well-Behaved, in, of on 2007-08-01, 20:00:00

If pole beans are allowed to get into trouble, they will. Early on, they are like a good baby that sleeps through the night. You poke the conveniently fat seeds into the ground, then let the warmth and easy moisture of late spring nudge forth the young shoots -- big healthy-looking things grouped in tidy circles at the base of their poles or lined up in long rows.

(Via washingtonpost.com - A Cook's Garden by Barbara Damrosch)

Posted by admin to Bean, Beauty, The, and on 2006-07-05, 20:00:00

If there were a prize for the most versatile vegetable, the scarlet runner bean would be a serious contender, even though it's hardly a garden staple. It may be best known as a children's plant. Kids are often encouraged to make a tepee out of bean poles and sow scarlet runners at the base of each. This is a great project for a small gardener -- the seeds are easy to plant, quick to sprout and fast-growing. By midsummer, a tent of dark green vines has magically appeared, adorned with clusters of scarlet flowers, a secret hideout of his or her own creation.