110 HORTICULTURE FOR SCHOOLS 



The bean thrives in warm weather, and will grow on 

 almost any type of soil. Loose friable soils are most 

 favorable. The seeds may be planted as soon as warm 

 weather begins. After the plants are up, frequent 

 cultivation is necessary. The dwarf kinds need no support 

 but the climbing varieties or pole-beans should have some 

 support for the vines. 



There are many varieties of beans. Certain kinds pro- 

 ducing pods free from fibers are used as string beans before 

 the seeds mature. The pods of string beans are either green 

 or yellow, the yellow ones being known as wax beans. Suc- 

 cessive crops of string beans may be secured by planting 

 every two weeks. Dry beans are planted in the same manner 

 as string beans. They are left on the vine until the pod is 

 ripe, when they are either pulled up by hand or harvested by 

 machinery. Later they are threshed. The lima-bean 

 plant produces large flat beans. It requires a warm 

 temperature for growth and a better soil than most of the 

 others. 



179. The pea was known to the Greeks and probably also 

 to the peoples of India and China. Davenport states that a 

 small-seeded variety has been found in the, ruins of ancient 

 lake dwellings of Switzerland and Savoy. 1 It grew wild in 

 its original form in the countries bordering the Mediter- 

 ranean, and possibly also in the south of Russia. The present 

 cultivated pea seems to be of comparatively recent develop- 

 ment. 



Peas require cooler weather than beans. They are, there- 

 fore, grown earlier in the spring. They are used both green 

 and dry. There are dwarf, medium, and tall sorts. Their 

 culture is similar to that of the bean. 



180. The soybean (Fig. 80) and cowpea are cultivated in 

 some countries for human food; they are used in North 

 America for stock only, despite the fact that they are fully 



Domesticated Animals and Plants, Davenport. 



