I plan on growing this next year, I question the other sites listiung it as endangered, only because with a quick search I found many US suppliers and more suppliers in Europe.

Here are the first 4 US suppliers I found:
http://www.localharvest.org/store/item.jsp?id=7562
http://www.cooksgarden.com/products.asp?dept=1245&lvl=1141&grp=1
http://www.tmseeds.com/product/251.html
http://www.felcopruners.net/product_info.php/products_id/599

I'll comment on taste an production next season.

Dean

Marquette,
you wrote:
Searching 'Blauhilde' on the net, I came across this site (linked) and got concerned that Blauhilde might be going the way of many other European varieties that have disappeared lately. (snip)

Which varieties have disappeared lately in Europe? Which varieties are you concerned for? As Dean said, Blauhilde is very widely available in most European countries and the USA. Perhaps we can put your mind at rest, if you have similar concerns over other varieties or are looking for other varieties.

One website that list many vegetables as endangered and I would questions some of the items in their list is Slow Foods

Dean

Here is a link that might be useful: Slow foods

Dean, I'm not familiar with the Slow-Food site or their stand on things. Will take a look later.

I just received my Blauhilde seeds and plan to grow it this summer. Hope it is a good beany-tasting bean. Did you ever grow the Trionfo Violetto? Wondered if Blauhilde is the German version of Trionfo V....... Perhaps I'll grow both this summer to see if they are the same.

Galina, my all-time favored bean disappeared from the trade, and I'm sorry that I didn't save seeds (though I still have a few old seeds left). It's name was Burro D'ingegnoli, a brown-seeded, yellow Romano pole bean. Apparently, the Ingegnoli company now uses the name for a white-seeded bush bean. The topic was discussed briefly (link below).

Here is a link that might be useful: Brown-seeded Burro D'Ingegnoli Romano Pole bean

Are you sure it is Ingegnoli that changed the variety? This is not likely for a bean that carries their house name. Where did Pinetree get their beans from and was that the correct variety, I wonder. Under European Seed Law it is not allowed to call two different beans by the same name. Sounds more like a mix-up to me.

Can you find a bigger supply of the beans you like (whatever their name) from SSE catalog? At least you have some seeds left to grow out. There is no inbreeding depression with beans as such, so you should be fine if you get healthy plants from the beans you still have.

I guess that the Ingegnoli company dropped the pole bean prior to the Registry's establishment. Then used the good-sounding name on a bean that they thought would give them return on investment, the investment being the registration fees, or as they are called in these ol' colonies, taxes. My conjecture.

By the way, what are the costs involved to keep a bean registrered? Is it an annual, or a one-time fee? Considering the huge number of varieties that were 'dropped' by growers, the fees are probably substantial. So many fine varieties were lost..... and for what purpose? A few bucks in the money pit of the EU Treasury.

No the Burro D'Ingegnoli that I was looking for is not listed in the SSE yearbook or seed catalog, or anywhere else, I'm afraid.

It would be neat to see confirmation from somebody else - an Italian member of this forum who is familiar with this variety for example - before it can be accepted as fact that Ingegnoli made a switch nearly 40 years ago.

You repeat in your last message that so many varieties were dropped. Well, Blauhilde is not dropped, and there is a big question mark over Burro d'Ingegnoli - it certainly exists as a bean in Ingegnoli's catalogue. If you did tell us which other varieties you are having difficulties finding, then members here can quite possibly help you locate those too, marquette?

Good luck with your searches for rare beans.

----------------------
Considering the huge number of varieties that were 'dropped' by growers, the fees are probably substantial. So many fine varieties were lost..... and for what purpose? A few bucks in the money pit of the EU Treasury.

I grew Burro D'Ingegnoli last year. It was the bush wax type, white seeded IIRC. I knew from the thread on the Burro D'Ingegnoli topic that this was what I was getting and not the pole bean. The seed was from a European source, although not from Ingegnoli itself. It produced well and looked nice but I won't grow it again because wax beans in general are too bland for my taste.

Jim

Jimster, Sorry for your bland snaps. The round bush Burro D'Ingegnoli is apparently nothing like the pole BD'I.

Gold Marie (yellow Roma pole) was bland for me last year, so wont grow it again. Also, last year my yellow beans were more prone to insect attacks than the green ones.

Anyway, I'm now on the hunt for beany-tasting beans, whatever the color.
Last year I thougt brown-seeded Ky. Wonder was ok and would like to find others with assertive bean flavor.

BTW, the Tarbais did end up yielding seeds. I'll have to count them and test for viability. I thought some stalks had both yellow and white blossoms, and think I got a few fotos. I should revive the Tarbais thread, just to document how the season ended. But have too many things on my plate right now.... Anyway, apart from being late (due to not getting enough sun?), the Tarbais was healthy, vigorous, and in a better situ, would probably have yielded heavily and earlier.
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-- before it can be accepted as fact that Ingegnoli made a switch nearly 40 years ago.--

I bought my Burro D'Ingegnoli brown-seeded, Roma pole-bean seeds in 2001. Last year when I checked, the name was used on a round, white-seeded bush bean.

If I understand you right, marquette, Pinetree (USA) have dropped a variety you liked, not anybody in Europe! Perhaps you should more productively direct your anger in that direction rather than at European seed houses, seed legislation or seed savers!

Are you planning on growing out your remaining seeds?

White flowered beans often start off white, then turn yellow. It is to do with the age of the flower and not a problem.

The most flavorful bean I've eaten was Dragon's Tongue, also called Dragon Languerie. I think it's a Borrelata type but don't really know that much about it! Anyway it grew very well even in my cool summer climate and produced heavily. The beans are wonderfully rich, quite good fresh off the bush, much better than green beans. Easy to cook too, they don't get mushy if overcooked, but boiling or steaming seems to diminish the flavor - sauteeing is much better. We ate whole meals of nothing but DT sauteed in butter with shallots and garlic.

I'm going to try Blauhilde here this year. Purple pods seem to do better in cool soil, but the breeze might still be a factor for pole beans. Thanks for the warning about the yellow Romanos, I was thinking of trying them too but maybe I'll stick with purple and red!