158 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



May 8, 1915. 



FOOD CROPS. 



THE CULTIVATION OF LIMA BEANS. 



In connexion with the Circular recently issued by this 

 Department urging ■• of the area under Lima 



beans, the information to be found on pages 22 and 23 oi the 



Botanic v po . Antigua, 1909 10, is likel} to i f 



rest. The information referred to deals with trials 



i -the Lima bean 

 the ! arieties of the species 



/ .naius. 



i e first point which received attention was the amount 



of] u plants, and il was ••• iimd that 



ili" loss a u Barbuda bi an, 73'5 per 



cent idfot thi I b n 7:; 5 p<?i cent. This will be seen to 



compare fai >urably with Woollj pyrol (Phaseolus Mungo) 

 which lost as much as r6 - 3 per cent. In other words, the 

 o thi pecies lunatus contain more dry 

 matter than that belonging to the species Mungo. The 

 value of Phaseol us lunatus as a green dressing is therel 

 greater in this respi 



Wea iuremenl - \ mad i i if the main roots of tl 

 plants with a view to finding out from what layer of soil 

 their food supplies are obtained, Sixty six days after planting, 

 the root of the Barbuda bean measured 16 inches, that of 

 the Lima bean 13 inches, and that of the Wooly pyrol II.'. 

 inches. This tends to show bhat the first two varieties are 

 more deep rooting than Woolly pyrol. 



At the time when these experiments were made, the 



nbei of acres of estate land cultivated in Barbuda bean 



(as ii green dressing) was I 12, while that under Woollj pyrol 

 was 12. and that under Lima Lean was nil. 



Some interesting figures are given in the report under 

 considi ution, of the W ights of different green dressings 

 grown at Skerretts and other experiment plots. Lima bean 

 planted on August I and leaped on October 8 gave 138 B). 

 ot green bush from ,',, acre, which is equivalent to 5,520 tt>. 



per acre. The Barbuda bean (^-acre) planted I reaped 



mi the ame dates, yielded 206 lb., iquivalent to 8,480 fc. per 



A similar area oi Woolly pyrol planted and reaped on 



the same dates gave 71 Dt>., equivalent to 2,960 ft), per acre. 



These figures show the great value nf the Barbuda bean as 



nil help tn explain its popularity amongst 



iters. 



The above information refers entirelj to the value of the 



genus Phaseolus as green dre ing It willbe remembered 



' the present policy involves the cultivation of these plants 



menu as soil improvers but as !' 1 crops and grown on 



a field scale. Curiously attention was given to Lima bean 



n this point of view as early as I 903, and in the \nt 

 Repot ' for I hal yea i t hen- are o shon t he yields 



nuns. A plot wa ■ establi 

 June 2, 1903, and the beans were planted 18 inches apart 

 in beds I feel wide. The growth was good and verj little 



rienced. The yield of shelled I" i 



was I" 11 Hi. As the p] i much too wide, a second 



crop was put in, two rows at I foot apart iach ban] thi 



yield of this plant ing i not recorded. 



Bush Lima beans n re also >-.., o on t »cl ■ i 1 6, 1903, 



I i plot •_'•_' at If 



a bank. The grov • ,; ood, and the beans were hai vi 



on January 7, 190 I. The yield o ■ << t \ 1! . o( shi 



The area of each plot was ,',, ai 



INTERESTING BEANS IN AMERICA. 



The Inventory of seeds and plants imported by the 



Office of Foreign S 1 and Plant Introduction of the United 



States Department of Agriculture during October 1 to 

 December 31, L 91 2, contains several interesting references to 

 species of Stizolobium (Lion bean), Canavalia (SwordJJand 

 Jack bean), Phaseolus (Adzuki), and \ igna | Sjsparagus bean). 

 The references to these have been collected together from the 

 above publication and brought under their respective generic 

 headings. 



In regard to Stizolobium, a note is made on the presenta- 

 tion of 5. niveumajad S.paehylobium bj the Botanical Survey 

 of India, and it is stated that all the varieties received have 

 i, known in India to have been in cultivation for centuries. 

 Another spieces of Stizolobium, received from the same 

 source, resembled the Florida velvet bean very closely, but it 

 was nut suitable for forage owing to the trouble caused by 

 the stinging hairs. Stillanothei species obtained from India, 

 from a different source, was described as an annual of climb- 

 ing habit, the immature seed pods being borne in clusters and 

 eaten when about 6 inches in length. When cooked they are 

 said to resemble, and to be almost equal to, the French bean. 

 Stizolobium cenereum is very similar to the one just described. 

 speaking of the Stizolobiums as an artiele of food, the 

 Superintendent of the Government Horticultural Gardens, 

 Lucknow, says: 'regarding the value of the fruits as an artiele 

 of food, I may say that I have eaten them regularly and 

 appreciate them as I have other similar beans. I have not 

 heard of any bad results from eating the pods. It must be 

 remembered that they are eaten only in the young state, 

 when they are tender and practically free from hair. Before 

 cooking, the outer skin is carefully scraped so as to ensure 

 that no hairs remain. The pod is very succulent and is, so far 

 as I know, wholesome, and may be recommended as an article 

 of diet.' 



Turning to the genus Canavalia, it is stated that 

 C gladiatum (the Sword bean) may be eaten when the pods 

 are young, and that this is a very useful vegetable because 

 it is obtainable [in India] when other vegetables are 

 scarce. The Jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis) also 

 receives attention, and the remarks made by an Hawaiian 

 planter are referred to. It is said that there is no 

 gnat difficulty in inducing cattle to eat the Jack bean. 

 They certainly seem to prefer the vine to the pods at first, 

 but by judicious mixture with other fodders the cattle can be 

 taught to appreciate both parts of the plant. 



An interesting reference is thai which has regard to 



Phaseolus angularis (the Adzuki bean) sent to the United 

 States fr Cuba. The presenter states: last year] found 



i.\ plants ol what was tome a new bean. The plant is 

 small. 1 to lit inches tall, with yellow blossoms, but the pods 



on more like a cowpea than like a white soj bi u o the 



North. They mast nicely and make a gi mil cereal coffee: 



also seem to cook as a soup bean except a little slow to soften. 1 

 Another write: says: 'these arc employed in Japan for human 

 food. The commonest method of cat Ing them i- to make a meal 

 tron i the beans, from which cakes oi various kinds are made.' 

 i in another page a note on this bean says thai those of 

 the best qualitj cost about 15c. a quart, smaller bi 

 of second quality 10c. The-, prices refer apparentl} to the 

 Japanese ti 



I'll la I an ol interest in the publication is the 

 Asparagus bean ( Vigna [dolichos is). This was 



from Cuba and is indeed known as the Cuba or 

 Vsparagus bean. It is an annual ol climbing habit grown 

 for its long pod, which when immature is served like the French 

 Lean. The pods when fully grown are 'J to |2 inches long. 



