George,
Chandra sent me seeds also. I only planted a short row late trying to see how they would do here and like you to determine growing habit and needed spacing. Likewise mine have done very well right through the heat. Them and the Fowler bush beans are the only beans to thrive during the heat. Mine are just setting small pods now. I plan on saving seeds also. So hopefully I'll have some to share if anyone desires. My last planting of the Wood's Moutain Crazy Bean is doing a lot better. At least those that the grasshoppers didn't feast on. The early ones have struggled greatly. And both plantings have grown slower than the Fowler beans. I'm impressed with them. Jay

George and Jay,
I am glad to know they are growing well in your conditions as well. They are our favorite beans. I started harvesting from mid July, DTM for me is about 60days. They keep producing until first frost kills them. They are very tender, light frost will kill them. Its legume and good for soil amendment. I tried few spacing options, wider spacing will leads to some laterals if you snip off the tip after it reaches 2ft tall and high density planting also give the same yield. I tried equal spacing in all directions at 4, 8 and 12". But I guess your approach of prefer fairly close together, in a wide row sounds good option too. By the way, I noticed that gross hopper are not attaching them! -Chandra

This may be a dumb question, but is this the bean that guar gum is made from? The reason I ask is I have celiac and can't eat anything with gluten(wheat) in it, and guar gum is used in a lot of gluten free baking. (It is also horribly expensive!)

Canokie,
From what I've read it is. Jay

Apparently this humble little bean is quite valuable. I never knew it was also used in fracking and the resulting shortage is driving up prices:

At $10 $15 a lb. for guar gum in the store, I may have to try growing some next year. I wonder how hard it would be to grind up the beans?

Here is a link that might be useful: Haliburton's margins lower due to shortage of guar gum

This sounds like something tailor-made for our climate!
I may have to see where I can find seeds for next year...thanks for the information :~)

Sharon

Sharon I plan on mainly saving all the beans for seeds this year. So if nothing drastic happens I should have some seeds this fall. Jay

The only place I can think of that has guar bean seeds is Evergreen Seeds. I'll link them, just in case Jay has a weather-related disaster.....and I'm just saying that because for all of us, weather-related disasters are just so common any more.

Here is a link that might be useful: Evergreen Seeds-Guar Bean Seed

Canokie,

Yes gaur gum is an extract of the cluster bean (also called guar bean), usually used for gluten free food but never thought about fracturing.

Sharon, I have seeds for sharing, let me know if you need them. I guess you need to wait until next summer, it may be too late to plant.

If you grow enough guar beans for seed harvest, then you can make guar gum at home, I linked one such method below. I need to ask my mom about traditional approach.

-Chandra

Here is a link that might be useful: How to Make a Guar Gum

I would think I was on a starvation diet if I had to go gluten-free, and celiacs have my sympathy.

I have noticed over the last few years that more and more doctors are diagnosing patients with 'gluten sensitivity' although they don't have celiac. It seems to have become a popular diagnosis. I would have real trouble since I tend to think the major food groups are fruit, nuts and grains, and wheat is my favorite grain.

Jay and Chandra...thank you for the offer of seeds/beans!

It should be interesting to grow them - I looked at a TX Ag site that said they grow from 6-46 inches...??? How big a plant are you guys growing?

All this time I thought "guar gum" was a synthetic food additive...LOL.

Sharon

Sharon,
They may be underestimating, it grows even higher under very favorable conditions. Last last year few of our cluster plants were about 70-75in. I guess they were competing with Burgundy okra growing next to them. In general I see them grow about 45-50in.

Yesterday I drove past a motel, near my work, which is operated by a family from India. They have a beautiful garden on the property, and, I noticed CLUSTER BEANS! Theirs are about 4' tall at this time.

I'm quite excited about growing these, in quantity, in the future. Just hope they mature a good deal of seed this year.

George

Chandra my DTM on the first beans was 56 days. I will be leaving most for seed. They are one crop that has never blinked this summer. Jay

I'm still waiting for dry seed. But this plant has kept growing and making more pods. It has been unfazed by our heat and ignored by both rabbits and grasshoppers. As long as we can produce seed in this climate, I'd say we have "discovered" a new and wonderful vegetable for Oklahoma and the South!

George

Jay,
Thanks for update on DTM, I guess weather pattern may also play role in DTM. It would be interesting to see if higher latitude may shorten the DTM? I never tried to save seeds from the plant grown in our garden as I have enough seeds in stock. It would be interesting to see how next progeny will perform from the plants grown here to their parental conditions (southern India). In case of coriander/cilantro, I have observed that offspring seems to doing much better than its parents, they seems to be naturalized in just one generation.

George,
That is true, our cluster beans keep producing despite of moisture deficiency and scorching heat.

Here are two photos taken yesterday;
Cluster of beans!
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they are already reached over 5ft and still counting
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Wow those are amazing. I may have to eventually try to get my hands on those things. I wish my DW would eat more beans. I can't begin to get her to fix them much less eat them. Any beans cooked in this house are cooked by me.
How much are they producing per plant? It looks like a good deal from the photos, but kinda hard to tell.

Well, a couple weeks ago, I pulled my cluster beans (now dead) and put the dry pods in a bowl. Yesterday I processed them. It was disappointing that my seed harvest was lower than that which I originally planted. Hopefully, in 2013, I can get them in earlier, and this will make a difference in seed production.

Toward the end of the summer we had a rabbit or two which discovered the joys of cluster beans. It would nip them at the ground level, apparently looking for moisture.

Last night I followed the link to Evergreen Seeds, planning to order some more seed. But after I threw in a packet of Malabar Spinach, I still didn't meet their minimum order requirement.

George

Is there any chance of getting a few guar bean seeds or does any one know of a source in Canada selling the seeds? I love these and my dad grew enough for the whole neighbourhood in India

e mail me alobo@hotmail.com

So excited to read this thread. I ordered quite a bit of seed from Evergreen. Since Daughter lives in Asia (with SIL and grandsons), I have been exposed to many Asian veggies. In the summer, I go to the BA Farmer's Mkt where lots of Hmong farmers sell their veggies. I love Asian stir-fried vegetables! So good for a body. This is a great seed site. And Daughter is gluten intolerant, so will plant some guar beans.

Thanks!

Sandy

Wondering and hoping maybe someone has some guwar/cluster bean seeds they can share.
Having a hard time finding them.

I have seeds I can swap with too.
Please let me know. Thanks!

OrangeChoc,

I wish I had some to share. I didn't get them planted this year, and my supply is so low that I'll probably purchase some this winter. Here's a link to the company which I know sells the seed.

George

Here is a link that might be useful: Evergreen Seeds

Where can I buy these guar cluster bean seeds here in the US?