210 BEANS 



particularly adapted to this purpose. They have relatively large 

 seeds, especially in the immature stage. One type sometimes used 

 for this purpose is known as the '^ Horticultural Lima," because 

 it is used the same as the Limas, though it is an entirely different 

 type. There are both pole and bush forms. The culture of these 

 green shell beans is the same as for string beans. This type of 

 beans, and also the various Limas, may be used in the mature 

 state as dry beans if desired, though their principal use is in the 

 immature state as above indicated. 



DRY SHELL BEANS 



Dry beans are a staple food product that will keep indefinitely 

 like wheat or corn. They are considered more in the nature of a 

 field rather than a garden product. Although any variety of bean 

 that has become ripe may be used as a dry shell bean, there are 

 certain varieties especially adapted to this purpose. They are 

 for the most part white-seeded sorts that jdeld heavily and mature 

 their entire crop at one time. The pods are usually woody and 

 ill-adapted for use as string beans, and the seeds so small that 

 shelling by hand in the immature stage would be a very tedious 

 task. When ripe, the pods are brittle, and the beans are readily 

 threshed out by suitable machinery. 



Beans as a field crop for use in the dry state are usually planted 

 with a grain drill or corn planter, by making proper adjustments. 

 They are also cultivated with field tools, either those used regularly 

 for cultivating corn or potatoes, or special tools adapted to cul- 

 tivating narrow rows and taking more than one row at a time. 



When the beans are ripe, they are either pulled by hand or 

 harvested with special machinery made for the purpose. After 

 curing they are threshed and cleaned by machinery. 



QUESTIONS 



1. What kind of weather is necessary for the growth of beans? 



2. At what three stages of maturity are beans used as food? 



3. What is the most important characteristic of varieties of beans that are 



suitable for use as ''string" beans? 



4. How do string beans compare with other beans as to length of time re- 



quired to produce the crop? 



5. What are the two distinct types of string beans recognized on the market? 



6. What other classification of string beans is important from the cultural 



standpoint? 



7. How and \\'hen are string beans planted? 



