2nd Sister

September 24, 2024

I was excited over the weekend when I went out to check the remnants of the three sisters planting to find the pole beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) had finally begun to produce.  I have mentioned the poor production for the 1st sister, corn (Zea mays var. rugosa), with only dried kernels suitable for grinding or bird food.  That was followed by an ok harvest of the 3rd sister, Butternut squash (Cucurbita moschata), which produced 7 gourds.  It has now been nearly a month and while there were lots of flowers and buds, I had not seen any beans hanging from the vines until last weekend.  The vines had been growing well, even causing some of the drying corn stalks to collapse and again lay on the ground.  I felt lucky for having staked the stalks after their infamous “leaning” event in July.  I knew at least some of the stalks would be able to stand despite the weight of the bean vines.  Yesterday I decided to see if I could find anything worth harvesting among the twisted vines.  I was anxious to see the result from the 2nd sister.

When I looked online, I found the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is an herbaceous annual plant grown worldwide for its edible dry seeds or green, unripe pods.  The bean’s botanical classification (as all Phaseolus species) is a member of the legume family Fabaceae.  Common beans acquire the nitrogen they require through an association with rhizobia (like most Fabaceae), or nitrogen-fixing bacteria.  The bean has a long history of cultivation with the wild Phaseolus vulgaris native to the Americas.  It was originally believed that it had been domesticated separately in Mesoamerica and in the southern Andes region 8000 years ago, giving the domesticated bean two gene pools.  Recent genetic analyses show that it was first domesticated in Mexico, and then split into the Mesoamerican and Andean gene pools.  As the 2nd sister (by planting order), maize (corn), beans, and squash are the three Mesoamerican crops that constitute the “Three Sisters” that were central to the indigenous agriculture.  All wild members of the species are climbing, but many cultivars are now classified as bush beans or climbing beans, depending on their style of growth.  Beans are grown on every continent except Antarctica, and during 2022, there were 28 million tons (28000 kt) of dry beans produced worldwide, led by India with 23% of the total.  The common bean arrived in Europe as part of the Columbian exchange, the widespread transfer of plants, animals, commodities, precious metal, culture, human populations, technology, diseases, and ideas between the New World (the Americas) and the Old World (Afro-Eurasia) in the late 15th and following centuries.

While I had (inadvertently) planted bush beans in my raised beds, I planted pole beans as my 2nd sister.  I have mentioned how bush beans are preferable for commercial cultivars as the fruit tends to ripen at the same time (yes, beans are another fruit that is eaten as a vegetable).  I harvested the bush beans last week and got a small return (the bowl in picture).  Unlike the bush beans I planted in the raised bed, the pole beans are expected to provide a continuous harvest throughout the growing cycle.  I look forward to several more weeks of harvest from my 2nd sister.    

THOUGHTS:  I was pleased with the harvest from the 2nd sister.  The first pick of pole beans yielded over 6 quarts of processed green beans.  I flash froze 4 quarts and plan for the other 2 quarts to be mixed with onions, bacon, and the Yukon Gold potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) I harvested earlier this month, for a meal later this week.  This Thanksgiving, I plan on providing a green bean casserole for the family using my home grown beans.  This is one of the joys I find in (trying) to provide subsistence agriculture.  While there are trials (i.e., the other sisters) in growing your own food, they make the successes sweeter.  This also forces me to explore a variety of preservation techniques.  Life-long learning is a good thing.  Act for all.  Change is coming and it starts with you.