CHAPTER XXIII 

 BEANS 



Beans thrive only in relatively warm weather, but their 

 period of growth is sufficiently short so that they are usually able 

 to develop their crop between the last frosts of spring and the 

 first frosts of fall in most localities where gardening is done in the 

 United States. Some types of beans require a longer time for their 

 development than do others. The length of time required depends 

 partly upon the species and partly upon the stage of development 

 at which the product is desired for food. In general, beans are 

 used at three different stages of maturity: (1) The immature 

 pods in which the fleshy pulp surrounding the developing beans 

 constitutes an important part; (2) the beans themselves at the 

 time they have reached their greatest size and before they begin 

 to shrink and harden; (3) the mature seed. The immature pods, 

 when in edible condition, are known as " string " or ^' snap " 

 beans; the large, immature seeds when used as food are called 

 " green shell " beans, and the mature seeds are called dry beans, 

 or dry shell beans. Different types of beans are grown especially 

 for use at the different stages, though some types are desirable 

 for use at more than one stage of development. 



STRING BEANS 



Only those varieties of beans which produce pods that are 

 practically free from woody tissue when at the stage of develop- 

 ment desired for eating are of value for the production of string 

 beans. Since string beans are used at an earlier stage of develop- 

 ment than any other type, they constitute a crop that can be 

 brought to edible maturity in a shorter time than any other class 

 of beans. Under favorable conditions the crop is ready for use 

 within two months from the time of planting, and string beans 

 can be grown even where the summers are very short. 



There are two classes of string beans recognized on the market 

 and on the table : Those that produce green pods and those that 

 produce yellow pods. The latter are usually called wax beans or 

 wax-podded beans, while the former are referred to as green string 

 beans. Both the green and the wax-podded sorts are represented 



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