Vermont Cranberry Bean

I'm getting ready to plant my beans. I have a pack of Vermont Cranberry Beans from Pinetree Garden Seeds. It says they are semi-bush. I looked it up in the plant files and it says there's a bush and a pole version. So if what I have is semi-bush, how tall does it get? Do I need to give it poles to climb? Anything else I need to know?

Thanks,

Jen

The problem is Cranberry bean is a somewhat generic name for a bean with pods and beans that both have noticeable streaking.

The PlantFiles entry here at DG lists Vermont Cranberry as a full-size pole bean needing support.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/39067/

I'm growing Uncle Walt's Vermont Cranberry Pole Bean this year. It's taking off like a rocket. :)

I guess my question is less about cranberry bean and more about what does semi-bush mean. I've only grown bush and pole beans, nothing semi-bush. Wondering if it needs support.

I have not heard the term semi-bush applied to beans either. The usual term for the inbetween is half runner. These will grow without support, but they are viny, multiples 3 ft or so in lenght. In good soil they can make a tangled mess. At any rate, while I have grown Cranberry, only the pole ones.

Okay, thanks farmerdill. I think at least I have an idea of what to expect now.

Thanks again.

Jen

Feldon - how tall are your Uncle Walt's Vermont Cranberry Pole Beans? The seeds I sent to Suze (and you) came from vines that got over 8' but I think if I had poles twice that big, they'd have gone all the way up. Very vigorous, fun to grow and very good tasting!

Flip

Mine are approaching 6' tall and show no sign of stopping. My supports are a total of 7' tall. Suze is using Texas tomato cages with extensions so she has 8' of possible height.

My Dwarf Taylor bush beans have little beans on them. Dragon Tongue and Uncle Walt's are loaded with flowers. Anxious to see how many beans I get out of 8' x 3' of pole beans vs. 8' x 3' of bush beans.

Thanks for providing us with these seeds!

This message was edited May 9, 2008 9:19 AM

You're welcome. Sounds like all your beans are doing well! Once my Uncle Walt's got the top they kept vining, kinda drooped over and eventually got onto another pole and went up some more. Never tried Dwarf Taylor - are they good ones?
I've got extra Uncle Walt's if you and Suze need any more.

Dwarf Taylor is a variety I stumbled upon at a garden center. It's a bush bean with wide, long pods with reddish streaks on yellow pods (starting from pink flowers). Not too different from dragon tongue but dragon tongue have purple streaks and purple flowers.

I'm gonna save a bunch of seeds of Uncle Walt's. I had great results with the seeds I saved of Dragon Tongue last year. All the beans have come up true and I've already harvested two big handfuls. All the beans look true-to-type and I got very good germination.

Can I get some advice on when exactly to harvest? I didn't realize how long these beans get. Wow! 9-10 inches, and FAT like 1", but the beans are not swelling too big yet. More importantly, the beans are almost completely green with just the faintest hint of red splotching. For fresh eating, as opposed to dried beans, should I be harvesting them when they are earlier/tender and thus completely green?

I'm in the same boat with the Dwarf Taylor. It does not have any of the distinct coloration right now. It's just fat, long green beans.

Cranberries and horticulturals are best used for green shellies just as the pods change color and get sort of rubbery as opposed to brittle. The Dwarf Horticultural, Taylor strain can be used as a snap bean when young. Depends on your taste buds, I find the texture somewhat mealy. The Dwarf Horticltural, Taylor strain was a favorite back in Virginia for October beans. Since moving to Georgia, I agree with the Georgians that crowder peas are much better eating.

Hmm. Well I didn't waste too much space on the Dwarf Taylor. ;) Just a 15 gallon pot. They're loaded and seem about the size I would expect green beans to be ready (but broader). They certainly aren't showing any color other than green. I can pick them, or wait until they go all the way to papery dry shell beans.

I think I am still confused on the Cranberry beans. They are huge, like twice as big as green beans, with the beans starting to swell and only a few pods have any sign of purple streaks. You would harvest at this stage for the beans inside the pods?

I eat mine as snap beans, mainly when they're still flat and mostly green. Once they develop further and begin to show their striping, the pods swell as the seeds get larger. Why don't you check out a pod or two and see how the beans look/feel? I know when I try to save seeds too early, the seeds are puffy and light and seem full of moisture. Maybe this is the stage you'd use them as shelled beans?