Seed Saving Information
Vegetables in the Fabaceae (Leguminosae) family rank second only to grains as the most important source of food for mankind. Fabaceae (Leguminosae) has been cultivated for over 6000 years. Grains and legumes, when eaten together, provide all of the essential amino acids needed by man.

Fabaceae (Leguminosae) flowers are perfect, usually butterfly shaped and quite pretty. Fabaceae (Leguminosae) flowers are self pollinating, but occasionally cross. In New Zealand the vulgaris species rarely cross but the coccineus seem to readily cross. Larger flowers preferred by bees. Peas are self fertile and do not cross, however Broadbeans are pollinated by bees and insects and do cross. See ‘Seed To Seed’ for more details. It is very important to understand the beans that climb are not necessarily what we are calling “runner” beans. Most climbing beans are P.vulgaris. It is only the members of the “Scarlet Runner Bean” family, P.coccineus with large beautiful seeds & flowers that cross readily. A lot of people misunderstand this.

BEAN - CLIMBING (Phaseolus vulgaris)

GREEN BEANS (these beans have been selected to be eaten as fresh green beans)

Dalmatian

Brought into Northland well over a century ago by the Dalmatian settlers. It has done so well, and is such a good bean, that even though it has never been available commercially it is really well known. Long, very fat, juicy, stringless pods. It does particularly well in cool seasons up here, however the very large leaves do not fare well in cyclones! Light green skin with purple streaks. Excellent raw or cooked as a green bean.

King George
Grown in New Zealand since early settlers’ days. Sent to me by Mrs Patterson of Howick who has its history right back in her family to when it was stolen by a gardener from King George’s garden. Very colourful pods - yellow with bright red streaks. A wide, flat type with no strings. An excellent addition to any home garden. Eaten as a butter bean and particularly good as a shellout bean.

Yellow Pole
This is one of our surprise finds from the bean trials we’ve done over the past few years. It has been a consistant winner, in terms of looks, taste, size of crop and length of harvest.! It is a yellow, wide, flat podded bean, about 30 cm long with excellent flavour!
Market Wonder
A very vigorous climber (the best and fastest) and it has a huge crop of beans over a very long period. If you’re looking for an old bean that you can crop for CSA’S farmers markets etc this would be a good one.
Blue Lake Runner
Huge bunches of skinny long round green beans I like this one. Good flavour!
America
These beans are really stunning, huge flat wide green beans with a fine purple spotty covering where they are in the sun. They are really good tasting beans as well, they will become a hit. They crop over a very long period and are the first and last to crop.

Emu
This is another new one we’ve bulked up from the bean trials because we liked it so much. It’s a small round green bean, very tender and juicy with a delicate flavour. Takes longer to begin cropping than other but crops longer and we have still picked ours in June some years. (Very warm Autumn)

DRYING BEANS (these beans have been specifically selected as drying beans over a long time)

Pean
I’ve been sent these beans from all over the country, they were obviously once widely grown. They are a drying bean but the seed is round like a pea , I guess that is why they’re called Pea Beans! They are vigorous climbers and take a long time to flower and give huge crops of beans quite late in the season... they are an old Dalmatian bean. Great in all dried bean dishes
Selugia
Another special NZ heritage bean that has come in to us from many places around the country. It originally came in with an Italian family in the north as far as I can tell and is a specialty drying bean. It’s a small dark (almost black) bean with white flecks. Outstanding flavour - great for re-fried beans.

SHELLOUT BEAN (Phaseolus vulgaris)
These beans have been specifically selected as shellout beans, they can also be dried. Shellout beans are beans that have large round seeds, that are harvested at the point when the seeds are at their fullest and fattest and the pods are colouring up but before the seeds begin drying. They are delicious at this point steamed until tender and served with vinaigrette or good olive oil in bean salad. The Italian gardener (Mr Stoppa of Borlotti Stoppa fame) who educated me about shellout beans said that traditionally they are eaten with raw onion and olive oil only!
Bob’s
This bean came to us from the South Island, originally from a returning Prisoner of War after the Second World War, hidden in his socks. The soldier had been hiding in the hills in Italy after having escaped from a prisoner of war camp and decided he couldn’t return home without these beans which had become a much loved part of his diet whilst over there. They grow really well in NZ, and are one of our favourite shellout beans (they are a specific shellout bean). They are actually the same as another bean we have called Cherokee Shellout, a bean which is a South American Heirloom, we’ll keep the NZ variety going here. The actual bean seed is fawn and brown stripy and very fat and round. Taste and texture is excellent for a shellout bean.
King George Beans can also be used as shellout beans. See earlier entry.
Borlotti Stoppas

These beans have come from the Italian "Stoppa" family and have been specially selected to be grown as shellout beans. They can be either steamed straight from the pod or frozen. Great steamed and tossed with olive oil and onion. They taste like kumara or chestnuts and are an integral part of the peasant food of Italy.

DWARF BEANS
GREEN BEANS
Bobiza
Pronounced Bobitza, this is an old Dalmatian bean from the far north, and I love it. It’s quite a small round short bean, with faint purple streaks, very juicy and tasty. (Approx. 20)
DRYING BEAN
Horticultural Bush
This is a dwarf bean that is a drying bean. The pods go bright brilliant red, and the seeds are red streaky as well. It’s a classic drying bean well known last century. It looks very similar to the Pinto Quarry bean to me (Approx. 20)

RUNNER BEANS (Phaseolus coccinneus)

All the members of the P. Coccinneus family are open pollinated, cross with each other readily and are perennial. That means once you establish a row of these beans, they are there forever. Many people have sent us seeds from their rows of beans, telling us that the row is 30 or 50 years old! Runner beans are delicious eaten as young green beans, and they are also delicious eaten as shellout beans, in salads, or baked bean type dishes. Runner beans do get stringy if left too long and they hate their roots getting dry and hot. They actually stop setting beans when their roots get stressed, and when stressed they attract shield bugs to themselves as well.

Their native home is the rain forest of South America where their roots are always moist and cool under the forest floor. They do not do well in really hot dry conditions.

There was a time when every kiwi garden had Runner Beans and I’ve been amazed to see how many varieties have been sent into us. I’d only ever heard of the Scarlet Runners before. All the beans in this family have bright colourful and noticeable flowers, unlike the beans in the vulgaris family. Many Runner beans are grown for their colourful flower display alone!

Scarlett Runner NZ

One of the old favourites, perennial, excellent flavour beans, must be eaten when young before going stringy; however they also make excellent dried or shellout beans, if you miss the green bean stage.

Black Seeded Runner NZ

This runner bean has come to us from the South of the South Island. With perennial roots, it’ll keep on coming up, the beans are very tasty and the seeds are shiny and black.

Painted Lady NZ

Stunning with red and white flowers, very ornamental. Good runner beans. The mottled brown and white seeds are also very beautiful.

Painted Lady beans

SOYA BEAN

The more I read about soya beans, the more I’m determined to learn to make miso. Traditionally they were always eaten fermented. Tofu is a relative new comer on the scene!  Actually once I began researching miso making I realised that we can use all of our legumes and grains to make variations on the miso theme. Bill Mollison’s book “Ferment & Human Nutrition” is an incredible book and gives us many ways of making it with many different bean and grain sources. Sandor Katz in “Wild Fermentation” also covers miso making.

Soya beans do grow well for us (as do dried beans) and I’m convinced that this is a crop worth far more trialling and working with in warmer areas of this land. Both heritage cultivars we have I’ve seen doing very well in Northland and also the Hawkes Bay and Hamilton areas.

Kaitaia

This cultivar has been grown for many years in Kaitaia. Is good cooked in the pods as a shellout bean or as a dried bean.

Brown

NZ Heritage seed sent from Canterbury to Koanga years ago, this variety with large brown seeds is my favourite. Coloured soya beans have far more flavour than the pale ones commonly available.

Black Soya Bean OS

Grows up to 80cm. Exceptionally flavourful variety originally from Oaxaca Mexico, but has been in NZ for a long time. Drought tolerant and extremely adaptable, grows well in a wide range of climatic conditions, and makes a beautiful blue black dye!

PEA (Pisum sativum)

Giant Alderman NZ

Traditional Heirloom Pea. Each pod contains 8-10 very large dark green peas. Vines grow to almost 2 meters. Does well in Northland unlike most other shellout peas. Large leaves and white flowers

Unwins   NZ

Unwins is another tall pea, a shellout type, but this one won our taste tests for flavour, it’s also a strong grower and healthy.

Chinese Sno NZ

These peas came to N.Z. with the Chinese goldmines in the West Coast of the S.I. They are tall growing, large edible podded peas.

Dalmatian NZ

The person that sent me this called it Dalmatian Pea Bean. I’ve been intrigued by these peas and so have many of our members. They came to New Zealand with the Dalmatians and were used as dried peas for soups and stews, or to simmer down into a thick sauce called ‘mushy peas’. I’ve discovered that these peas were developed by the Capuchin Monks in Holland or France in the 16th century, and are known there as Capucyner Peas. They have two tone purple flowers and grow to 1.5m. The traditional recipes for these peas are found in the peasant culture of Europe, we’ve created our own variations for the Body & Soul cookbook. Especially great for soup, casserole dishes.

Hadfields NZ

Another Alderman type that has come from the North Island this time. Grows to 2m.

Flour Pea NZ
A pea that has survived to today because of one man. Henry Harrington. It grows really well in areas with low humidity especially, however, we are selecting our seed each year for more northern conditions. This pea has many special attributes. It’s flowers are pink for a start, it could be an ornamental. Secondly it has the most amazing tendrils. They are huge and very tenacious and the tall vines hang on exceptionally well to the netting. The peas themselves can be eaten fresh as shellout peas, or as Henry found they re great ground to flour and used as tempura batter. I’ve never seen a pea like this one in any overseas catalogue.

BROADBEAN (Vicia faba)

Scottish N.Z.
A strong healthy old broad bean which is a Southland Heirloom. Extremely prolific cropper. Has done well in the north over winter.
Suttons Dwarf EC
An early commercial variety from the South Island which seems to do well in the north in winter. Selected because it is not as tall as some varieties and so does not get thrown by the wind. Usual white flowers and green beans.
Giant Windsor N.Z.
Sent to us by a member originally from the South Island. Produces huge green seeds and is a reliable cropper in Northland. Broadbeans planted on a bed of wilted comfrey will give you an increased yield.