Thank you @robert567! Bakers Creek it is. I dont know yet if I want the green or the burgundy....Its going to be fun no matter what.

If I may ask: I often see people have two or even three of these bean plants in a plug or hole. Is that how it is done with these plants? Often times I have noticed, because of root competition, when there is more than one plant in a hole the productivity (fruits, flowers or foliage) is not additive. It becomes more like there is only one plant there. Sometimes its worse, the leaves and fruits get smaller. Maybe its different with these beans.

I grow & collect a lot of yardlong beans, but to make the best recommendation, @katyajini, I would need to know your climate. I seem to remember that you are in a warmer area?

Black-seeded yardlong beans are the earliest, and often the most productive. One commonly sold in seed racks as "Asparagus" is very early (probably the earliest pole variety) highly productive, and tastes very asparagus-like. Taiwan is early, slightly less productive, and gets very long, slim beans... but they are not very firm, can become hollow in heat, and IMO are below average for quality. Both of these varieties can easily be over-cooked, so I really would recommend them only for short-season areas, or for those that like the asparagus flavor.

My recommendation would be to stay away from the black-and-white seeded Thai Soldier, which is closer to a cowpea than a yardlong bean. More of a novelty IMO, and poor quality.

Red-seeded varieties tend to have longer DTMs & a slightly lower yield, but are generally firmer & sweeter. Chinese Red Noodle is firm, has a nutty flavor, and really beautiful color - one of my favorites. It makes extraordinarily beautiful & crunchy dilly beans. 3-feet-plus (also spelled 3 Feet Plus) is another firm, crunchy variety which not only thrives in heat, but has shown some tolerance for soil salts. Those are the only commercial varieties I've tried, most of my yardlongs are heirlooms or from other countries... but any red- or red-and-white seeded variety should have similar traits.

Nearly all yardlong beans are pole, but there are a few bush types. I grow an heirloom called Yancheng Bush, but there is a similar (and maybe identical) red-seeded variety called Stickless Wonder that is sold commercially. These are true-bush habit, and have much shorter pods (11-12" max). They are, however, just as firm as red-seeded pole varieties, and have the shortest DTM - about 50 days to first pods. They will grow where all other yardlongs fail, and will bear continuously almost until frost if kept picked.

Hi @zeedman Zone 5 Wisconsin: I am in zone 7A. I will get the red noodle then. I am not sure where to look for th green ones you mention.

@zeedman Zone 5 Wisconsin Burpee has an 'Asparagus' green and red-purple. Is this one it?

The Burpee Asparagus bean looks like the one I mentioned, which has dark green pods with purple tips. Those beans should be cooked very lightly (stir-fry is best) to preserve their delicate flavor. Come to think of it, not much different than real asparagus in that regard.

@zeedman Zone 5 Wisconsin....I am so sorry😢😢 I misread and misunderstood your advice/recommendations above. It was so late and I kept falling asleep on my computer. Are you saying NOT to go for the Asparagus (Burpee) and Taiwan (Bakers Creek) green-type long beans? There are better ones for my zone 7A? IIIIIIFFFFFF you dont mind there are a lot of green type long beans being sold here https://asiangarden2table.com/product-category/beans-peas/long-bean. Maybe you like one or more of these? If you were not advising I would be doing inie minie minie mo.

(If you think Burpee's Asparagus is good, ok then.)

Thank you so much for taking the time to contribute and teaching me all this. I could not be more grateful or energized.

@katyajini, my opinion on the black-seeded varieties is mixed. On the one hand, those two varieties are the earliest & most heavily bearing varieties I've grown. The Asparagus Bean is probably the easiest & most reliable yardlong bean... which if you are growing yardlongs for the first time, may be something to consider. I don't get any complaints from those I give them to, they are just not my favorite for flavor & texture - and your tastes may vary. ;-)

I really would not recommend the Taiwan yardlong bean for a first effort, in spite of its heavy yield. The beans have a very short harvest window, and require extra attention.

The site you linked is interesting... especially because there are few good U.S. sources for Asian/Oriental vegetables. They appear to have some good yardlong varieties, but I could not find enough info on the site to make a recommendation one way or the other. You can do a sort by ease/difficulty of growth, and the pole yardlongs are listed as 'medium'. They do have a bush variety (which is likely the same one I grow) listed as 'easy'.

My main concern is that the company states that they are an importer. Some tropical yardlong beans can be day-length sensitive (I've grown a couple) which means they would bloom & bear late in the season, as day length approaches 12 hours. If you are interested in any of those varieties, I would recommend that you contact the company, tell them your location/climate, and ask which varieties might be suitable. If you do order from them, I hope you will return to this forum to post your results & observations at season's end.

I see some vegetable varieties on the site which I have not seen elsewhere, so I may order a few things from them myself... thank you for that link.

I will add to my previous comments. This appears to be a new company; the website is impressive, but I could find no reviews. This does not mean that they are disreputable, but it does suggest not ordering a lot of seed at once. If you order from them, please post a review here on 'rate vendors', as will I.

EDIT: I've sent them an email asking whether their seeds are sent from Florida, or direct-shipped from Asia, and will post an update here if I get a reply.

Hello @zeedman Zone 5 Wisconsin: You may already have a reply from the above website..I found this under About Us:

Asian Garden 2 Table LLC is fully licensed for the importation and distribution of plant seeds as required by law under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). This is required of any person, persons, or company that imports & re-packages seed for distribution within the United States. All our imported seed passes through US Customs as required by law and is distributed throughout North America in accordance with all the appropriate State & Federal regulations.

All our seeds that are imported into the United States from abroad are required to pass phytosanitary inspection to be free of plant pests and diseases, and all varieties are regularly verified for acceptable germination rates. We do not and will not import or distribute any plant varieties that are considered to be an invasive species. All our seed packets are properly labeled according to the USDA APHIS & FDACS requirements for vegetable seed in packets as prepared for use in home gardens or household plantings. Every seed packet that we sell is processed, stored, and packaged for shipment on our property in Pinellas County, Florida.

When you order our seeds you will never receive a package from abroad under an inappropriate customs classification such as “jewelry” or “earbuds”. Every seed packet we sell will come directly to you from our farm in Florida, via USPS with tracking information, and every seed packet will be labeled with exactly what is inside. We sell our seeds exclusively from our website, not on Amazon or eBay, so that you will always know that you are getting exactly what you ordered, from us at AG2T.

I have been watching their YT videos and I am quite impressed by the young woman who is the brains and the brawn of the whole operation.

I will be getting only a few varieties I will let you know.

Yes, I did receive a reply. I had also asked questions about several of their varieties; their response to my shipping question is quoted below:

"After we receive your order, we ship them in 1~2 business days. It will take 3~4 business days to arrive in the US.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks.

Regine"

I placed an order today, and intend to trial many of their yardlong beans.

I found this YT video on how to grow and trellis long beans. It makes things so much clearer, at least for me. Especially the part on how to prune and trellis the vigorous vines. She says it makes the plants more productive and less of a jungle. As much as I love the greenery, by the end of the season it feels like too much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKmdfhvDI2M

In this video she describes several varieties of long beans and what stage of maturity it is best to harvest them. Some of this went right over my head because I dont know any of these cultivars. It is interesting!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuJdn7ZjrwM&t=110s

Here 7:16 to 14:00. Her garden is so clean and beautiful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAQaXabWi_8i

I have never tasted a white or dark purple variety.

Very nice videos, and beautiful gardens. I question their comment about the long beans being "hybrid" though. All beans (including yardlongs) are not cost-effective to hybridize, since you get so few seeds per pollination. If they were hybrids, the seeds would be much more expensive, due to the amount of labor required. It is fairly commonplace for seed sellers to claim that an OP variety is "hybrid" to discourage gardeners from saving their own seed. While most commercial bean varieties may have begun as hybrids during the breeding process, they are normally stabilized prior to sale. I'll be putting that to the test. ;-)

Having watched those videos, I regret that I didn't order the luffa - theirs looked beautiful. My one attempt to grow luffa here was a dismal failure. The Florida climate is much more suited for luffa than Wisconsin, but I'd like to hope that with the right variety, I could get results even half as good as theirs.

@zeedman Zone 5 Wisconsin: I love young luffa squash too. It has such a delicate flavor, an unique texture and the most beautiful watercolor green color when just cooked. I have not ever grown it either....

My ears perked up too when she started talking about not saving seeds...well who knows. My guess is if you grow only one type you will get the seeds true to the parent plant. Somehow she does not strike me as a disingenuous person though.

Do you know how the 'Purple Mart' red beans differ from the 'Red Noodle'? One is that it does not lose its red color when cooked, but the red color actually darkens. How about in taste/texture and to grow?

I had always assumed that the "purple" and "red" long beans were just different names for the same bean. But then a seed saver in Louisiana sent me seed for a purple variety - and it was very different. The pods were darker bluish purple, and VERY late. I only got a couple pods before frost, and no dry seed. I don't know whether or not other "purple" long beans share that long DTM, but I wouldn't put all my eggs/beans in that basket.

In contrast, Red Noodle grows & matures seed easily here. Those beans don't lose their color when cooked, but turn a dark purplish gray. Not very appealing... until you splash them with a little vinegar, which restores them to a deep burgundy red! That beautiful color change (and their crunchy texture) makes them well suited for pickling as dilly beans. We enjoy them as a side dish too, lightly cooked & seasoned with vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic powder.

So what characteristics makes for the best eating long (cowpea) beans?

@robert567 I dont quite know how to answer your question. I have never actually touched or smelled the fresh uncooked long beans.

I went over all the reviews on Bakers Creek for the Red Noodle variety and they have been described as a mushroomy green bean, a cross between asparagus and green bean and mushroom plus mild radish. Most people loved them and just a few thought they were bland or not tasty.

My experience with them has been while eating out in ChinaTown. I have had them prepared Szechuan style where they are dry fried with chiles and other spices and maybe with bits of pork. And also in Malaysian restaurants where they are stir fried with tiny dried anchovies or dried shrimp with or without onion and tomato. Those dishes are delicious with white rice. The beans absorb the flavors completely so I cant describe what they are on their own. The texture is toothsome without being chewy or tough.

If I get a harvest (oh God I hope I do), I look forward to cooking them in a little butter so I can taste them just as they are. I gather its important to pick them young, more accurately at the right stage, and the window of time is small.

This summer I am trying out Red Noodle Beans from Bakers Creek and Asparagus beans from Burpees.

I think Zeedman is trying some novel types.....

But what I just wrote does not answer your question. Maybe someone else will say.

"So what characteristics makes for the best eating long (cowpea) beans?"

That would probably be a question of personal taste. For me, I prefer varieties with firmer, crunchy pods, picked early (before seeds enlarge) and cooked lightly. Those firm varieties also tend to be sweeter and/or with a slight "nutty" flavor. Red Noodle has a strong nutty flavor when raw, and is the only one I like snack on raw.

Some varieties have a mushroom or asparagus flavor; the ones I've tried with those traits also tended to have softer texture when cooked.

There is one variety I grow (Sierra Madre) which has dark green pods that are exceptionally slow to develop fiber, and in width & texture, come close to a regular snap bean. That one adds flavor to a broth, and is one of my favorites. I've sent that one to several gardeners in hot climates where snap beans struggle, a couple of whom now grow them every year.

The common factor is that the flavor of long beans is different from snap beans, unusual - and not for everyone. It is helpful to know how to prepare them, and some of the AsianGarden2Table cooking videos are very instructional. But yardlong beans are really fun to grow, and are great in stir fries (or when you just want something different) and make great, super-crunchy dilly beans.

The first order from AsianGarden2Table arrived today, with yardlongs & a few other beans. The seed looks to be in good condition, in paper packets with both English & Chinese instructions. I will be placing another order for several different gourds.

You are going to have so much fun @zeedman Zone 5 Wisconsin. Maybe you will share with us what Asian veggies you will be growing, feels exciting.

I am going to place an order tonight: peas for growing shoots (my favorite greens of all times), and Chinese garlic chives (I am on a perennial Allium kick). I might have ordered some long beans. I wrote AsianGarden2Table.com for a recommendation for long beans for my area, as you had suggested, but did not get a reply so I am leaving it at that. At least until I learn more about different varieties in other ways.

I am in zone 6b and had good luck with the asparagus beans from ferry- morse. These are the dark green type. I start them inside in small pots about a month/month and a half before I am gonna put them outside (which is when overnight temps are 40 +). I also use the pea and bean booster from burpee. If they get too long I just trim them back and they will sprout again. Had a lot of beans very early on by doing it this way. Your worst nightmare is cold soil and bean seeds. They will just rot. Have been growing these for the past 20 years.

I've been growing red noodle bean. Tasty and grows well. I've mixed it with firecracker vine flower for a neat display. The noodle beans hanging below, with the firecracker blossoms topping off the trellis.

This year I'm not growing a noodle, or any drying beans. I need to do a round of pickled beans, so its some green and yellow pole beans this year. I might put in some of the butterfly pea with the firecracker vines in the row.

Both are viable options. Many people enjoy the 'Red Noodle,' which is more of a "two foot bean" (my longest was 28").

"This year I'm not growing a noodle, or any drying beans. I need to do a round of pickled beans, so its some green and yellow pole beans this year."

Just an FYI... Red Noodle beans make outstanding dilly beans. Crisper than any common bean, and can be cut to length to fit any jar size. And the cooked beans turn beet red when exposed to vinegar - as in pickling brine. :-) Crunchy eye-catching dilly beans, and they make great gifts. I've tried dilly beans with other firm yardlongs, and the crunch is so great that will never go back to using common green beans.

Any simple ways that you cook fresh long beans? They seem kind of "meh" steamed but okay.

Many stir fry recipes out there, but then any veg could be used with fresh garlic and taste good. Youtube videos usually just use the tasteless tough grocery store regular beans, all that matters is the crispness. I've tried blanching the long beans in boiling water for a minute so they don't get burnt stir frying. I read that restaurants use sugar. Teriyaki?

If you want to try growing yardlong beans, try a few different colors. I find that even in the same garden different types do dramatically better each year. I did purchase my first seeds from ECHO and Bakers creek. The green are generally the most constant, but purple and red have different years when they dramatically outperform. All yardlong beans need a great deal of sun and water to take off. My friend in Ohio would use supplemental lighting to get them started, and they would grow quickly. Trace minerals periodically supplementing the soil improve the flavor.

I tend to saute with a little acid and fat (ex: lemon juice and olive oil) to bring out the flavors. One year I had 50 freezer bags ready for soup (cut in 1 cm chunks).

More important than length is the girth. It is better to harvest the pods for sauteing before the bean is very large.

I've tried "Red Noodle", they seemed to be a little bland to me when stirred fried.

And they seemed to be an aphid trap.

Okie HU

I totally get the seed overload struggle – it's a jungle out there! For green beans, I'd recommend starting with the classic 'Contender' variety. I grew them last summer, and they tick all your boxes: super tasty, tender, practically stringless, and crazy productive.

I got mine from Baker Creek, and they didn't disappoint. Easy to grow, even for a newbie like me. The vines went nuts, and I had beans for days. Plus, they're a reliable choice, and you can't beat the satisfaction of growing your own delicious veggies.

While those colorful varieties look tempting, I'd say stick with 'Contender' for your first rodeo. Happy gardening! 🌱

I never did come back to review the yardlongs I trialed from AG2T. Started as transplants, the 3 varieties I grew all matured easily in my short summer. The luffa did well too, as did a 2nd variety I tried this year, and a bitter melon from them, So far, no sign of daylength sensitivity in anything, which is pleasantly surprising.