Uncle Steve's Pole Bean - pictures of seed?

14 years ago

Does anyone have pictures (or could take pictures) of seed stock of Uncle Steve's Pole Bean from a few years ago? I grew them again this year and I think the seed was cross-polinated with something else. Some of the beans were not curved, not striped and did not taste as good. The dried beans I harvested are an assortment of colors. I thought I was avoiding the non-striped pods, which appeared to have dark brown beans with black stripes. The correct beans had more cranberry like beans: light with red stripes. Unfortunately, now I am finding light beans with black stripes that I thought came from striped pods. Dang! I would just buy new seed stock, but I'm thinking the source is probably crossed now.

My only other thought is that maybe the bean look/grew differently because of our extremely odd weather.

And help would be very appreciated!

Bellatrix

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Comments (6)

rxkeith
14 years ago
bellatrix

i don't have pictures of the seed.
the correct looking seed should be a light tan with purplish whorls.
the correct bean should be flat pod green bean with dark purple all over it and a sickle shape curve.
it is possible to have the correct looking seed harvested from the correct looking bean give a cross the next year. that has happened to me occasionally over the years. for me it is an easy thing to correct since there are only the odd plant or 2 that may show up crossed. when darryl jones did the grow out to provide seeds for sandhill preservation, he had something like 5 pounds of seed which makes it more complicated. he did his best to eliminate any crosses during the grow out, but some are still showing up unfortunately.
throw the off colored seeds in the soup pot.

weather should not play a part in how they look or taste. i have grown the bean in southern, and extreme northern michigan, and the correct bean should be very good tasting either way.

keith
jimster
14 years ago
Here's a pic.

Jim
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bella_trix
Original Author
14 years ago
Thank you! I forgot that Gardenweb is no longer letting me know when people answer my post. I got them from Sandhill and last year's seed does seem crossed. Unfortunately, a woodchuck ate the plants from Sandhill beans in 2008 that I was trying to save for seed.

I'm getting the following three seeds:

Bean "A" looks like the right one. I'll eat the others.

Thanks again,
Bellatrix
Macmex
14 years ago
I went many years with nary a cross. Then, last season BOOM! I must have had a lot of them. This year I've had crosses show up all over the garden. Conditions might have something to do with it. But I'm suspecting that it was the introduction of a variety which is more "promiscuous" than regular beans. In the future I'll plant that one WAY far away from other beans.

George
Tahlequah, OK
rdback
14 years ago
Hi George,

Were you able to identify the "friendly" variety? If so, I'd like to keep him away from the regulars as well.

Rick
Macmex
14 years ago
The variety is actually a mix of white seeded greasy beans from NC. It was given to me as "Old Timey Greasy Bean." This mix has several variations in pod shape and degree of "greasiness." Every cross I've found has either had a greasy pod or white seeds.

George