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French beans...I think

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  • French beans...I think

    I honestly can't remember if they're french or dwarf beans, but they look like this. I am wondering if there is something wrong with them as they are striped red, or is this how they are supposed to look ? Does anyone know, please ?
    If you click on the picture it will enlarge.
    Attached Files

  • #2
    Borlotti.

    Well done you!

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    • #3
      Wow ! Have looked on the internet and it says they're difficult to grow - so see what you mean.
      These are too green at the moment, aren't they. Shouldn't the shells be white not green ? I shelled it and the bean is green inside and should be white and mottled, shouldn't it ? Will it grow if I resow an immature bean ? Sorry for all the questions but I had never heard of Borlotti beans. I've got loads more still unpicked. Shall wait until they're ripe.

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      • #4
        You can eat them now as green beans
        You can wait until the beans start to colour and the pod starts to lose it's green-ness - eat them as shelley beans
        You can leave them to get really fat, and use them as kidney beans [or freeze them and use them as kidneys - no need to soak, just give them a good boil before using them]
        Or you can leave them on the plant until dry, once they are bone dry, store in a jar and when you want to use them in a chilli or stew or - well - any food - soak overnight and boil until 'mashable' before using in meals

        They are very versatile.

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        • #5
          And yummy! I often use my runner beans in exatly the same way. I love dried beans. They're lovely boiled till squishy, then tossed with a mustardy herby dressing and some parsley!
          The Impulsive Gardener

          www.theimpulsivegardener.com

          Chelsea Uribe Garden Design www.chelseauribe.com

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          • #6
            I have some beans like this but they are Selma Zebra Climbing bean. Here's a photo showing them with some Borlottis that seem to be redder.Mark's Veg Plot: Harvesting the "shelling" beans
            Last edited by veggiechicken; 07-08-2012, 08:44 PM.

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            • #7
              The borlottis get redder and the green disappears as the bean inside grows...i've got about 30 different varieties of beans that have the same pattern on the outside in various differing shades; but I took a gamble on them being Borlottis as they are the most common variety.

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              • #8
                Thank you those above for the information. My unshelled beans do resemble more the Selma Zebra Climbing bean shown in your second picture, Mark. But at the moment the actual bean looks like the Borlotti Lingua di Fuoco shown on the plate. But that could be because they are not ripe yet. Once they are ripe they may turn a different colour. I'm quite confused, yet thrilled at the same time, I never knew there were so many varieties of bean. This was a first attempt. Do you think my green bean may turn a different colour when ripe?
                Last edited by lettuceleaf; 07-08-2012, 08:57 PM.

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                • #9
                  Its a shame that you can't cut through a bean and find its name in the middle, like a stick of rock

                  PS, Lettuceleaf, I'm not Mark - that's not my blog!! Just a photo I found by Goggling!
                  Last edited by veggiechicken; 07-08-2012, 08:58 PM.

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                  • #10
                    Have you not got the original packet?

                    Not that it matters, the principle of eating or storing them is exactly the same.
                    Last edited by zazen999; 07-08-2012, 08:59 PM.

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                    • #11
                      Sorry, Veggie (can I call you that for short? ) Yes so much simpler if the bean had its name in the middle - perhaps one day...

                      I don't have the original packet. I could kick myself sometimes because I never seem to have kept the packet of the plant that I have a query with. I think I'm going to wait until they're ripe and then follow your instructions.

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by lettuceleaf View Post
                        Sorry, Veggie (can I call you that for short? ) Yes so much simpler if the bean had its name in the middle - perhaps one day...

                        I don't have the original packet. I could kick myself sometimes because I never seem to have kept the packet of the plant that I have a query with. I think I'm going to wait until they're ripe and then follow your instructions.
                        Call me whatever you like lettuceleaf
                        Zaz knows her beans, unlike me! I have lots of seeds and sowed 4 of each just to see what happened. So far I've picked 4 measly little beans, most of which looked like yours and were all grown in the greenhouse. Its not been a good year for me
                        So I haven't a clue how a Borlotti or a Selma develop Follow Zaz's advice and you won't go far wrong.

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                        • #13
                          I usually grow loads of bolotti type beans for drying and storing over the winter. Had a massive crop last year and have eaten a lovely bean chilli with some I've still got left (also keeping some for resowing each year). Tend to grow a few different varieties as I like the look of the different colours in a meal. Unfortunately this year my plants are pants and I'll be lucky to get more than a couple of meal fulls from them

                          Some of us live in the past, always talking about back then. Some of us live in the future, always planning what we are going to do. And, then there are those, who neither look behind or ahead, but just enjoy the moment of right now.

                          Which one are you and is it how you want to be?

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by lettuceleaf View Post
                            I never knew there were so many varieties of bean.
                            There are 100s.

                            Borlotti are easy to grow, they just need warmth like all French beans (which can be tall, dwarf or middling).

                            Here are some recipes to inspire you: http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...ans_26962.html
                            All gardeners know better than other gardeners." -- Chinese Proverb.

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                            • #15
                              Goodness me!...mine are still flowering!!!!

                              Well done- they're brill to dry and store for winter use. I picked mine too early a couple of years ago- but left to dry on the plant, I got a massive supply for the winter.
                              Pretty aren't they???
                              "Nicos, Queen of Gooooogle" and... GYO's own Miss Marple

                              Location....Normandy France

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