Dry Bean Photo Album

Dry Beans

(Phaseolus vulgaris)

The common bean was first domesticated about six thousand years ago by the people of Central America. They are very easy plants to grow, seldom bothered by pests or diseases. I plant mine just after the last frost in late May-early June, and harvest from late August though late September.

On a very small scale dry bean pods can be shelled by hand. At our farm however I use a threshing box to cut down of the labour involved. Another simple threshing method is to use a bag (burlap or perhaps an old pillow case), fill it with the dry pods and flail it until the pods have broken. The contents of the bag can then be poured out and the chaff can be winnowed away.

Being legumes they fix nitrogen from the air and enrich the soil for future crops, making them a valuable part of your crop rotation. They tolerate poor soil but like almost all plants do better on soil enriched with compost and manure. On a per acre or per square-foot basis, dry beans are one of the best source of  protein I can think of, which makes them perfect for those aiming towards a more self-sufficient diet. Bean flowers are self fertile and crosses between varieties are rare so beans are one of the easiest plants to save seed from.

Packets cost $3.00 each and contain approx. 60 seeds, unless otherwise noted.

Papa de Rola - My highest yielding dry bean in 2009. A rare Portuguese heirloom with beautiful mauve, grey and white seeds. Climbs to 3 feet.  

Uncle Willie’s - A bush variety with large maroon and cream striped seeds.      

Kahnewake Mohawk - An extremely prolific pole bean. Beautiful plump, round seeds are striped with tones of brown. In 2007, our 12 square foot raised bed of this variety produced a full litre of beans.  

Low’s Champion - Red cranberry type beans on bush plants.      

Candy - Very large red and white seeds that look a bit like peppermint candies. The high yielding plants climb to 3 feet.      

Kodiak Pinto - Small round pinto beans on twining plants. Productive and quite rare.    

Neabel’s Ukrainian - Very pretty maroon speckled two-toned beans. A heavy yielding pole variety.

McGrath’s Africa - Very unique and ornamental plants produce purple flowers followed by leathery purple pods filled with large flat white beans. A vigorous grower that reaches eight feet or more if supported.    

Mrociumere - The speckled purple seeds of this variety are among the most beautiful of our beans. Productive bush plants. A rare heirloom variety from Kenya.  

Stevenson’s Blue-eye - Beautiful, round, bi-coloured seeds are blue and white. Plants climb to 4 feet.    

Tanya’s Pink Pod - An interesting pink sport of Sequoia that was introduced by Dan Jason of Salt Spring Seeds. An apprentice named Tanya discovered the original sport while working in Dan's garden on Salt Spring Island, BC. Also a great snap bean.   

Kenearly - A yellow-eye type bush bean developed at the Agriculture Canada Station at Kentville. Perfect for baked beans.    

Nez Perce - Smallish yellow-orange seeds are produced early and in large quantities on bush plants. Originally from the Nez Perce Tribe of Idaho. One of our best and most dependable dry beans.    

Ireland Creek Annie - Another very early and dependable bush bean. This bean was named after Ireland Creek Farm in BC’s Fraser Valley, where it has been grown since the 1930’s.  

Ruckle - Large white kidney beans are produced heavily and up off the ground on sturdy bush plants. This variety was selected for over many years by Henry and Gwen Ruckle. The Ruckles were one of the first pioneering families to settle Salt Spring Island, BC, in 1874. Their former homestead now forms Ruckle Provincial Park. 

Bird’s Egg - A great pole bean with egg-shaped, purple-speckled seeds. Developed in 1825 in England.

Rhodenizer - Round white beans produced on bush plants. The mild beans are good for baking.