DESCRIPTIONS OF VARIETIES 



31 



It is too late for maturity in Central France, but farther 

 south, and in favorable conditions elsewhere, it is highly 

 esteemed for the size and beauty of the green beans, as 

 well as for a peculiarly pleasing flavor which develops 

 only under the best conditions. It was listed and 

 described in America several times during the two 

 decades or more after 1860, but probably little grown. 

 Vt ild Goose. Refs. 13. A variety that has been 

 known and grown in Europe and America perhaps 

 more as a novelty than as a commercial sort. The 

 large fat pods are hardly suitable for market use but 

 are fair in quality when young. The shell beans are 

 excellent either as green or dry shell. 



Plant tall, 7 to 8 feet, vigorous, good climber, rather open 

 growth particularly above the base of plant; foliage medium abund- 

 ant, dark green, leaves crumpled, somewhat rough, medium heavy 

 veining, medium thick. Flowers rose purple. 



Pods pale green when young, turning to cream yellow streaked 

 and marked with light purple in green shell stage. Quality fair; 

 not very fleshy, stringless, quite fiberless, and medium in texture. 

 Size short to medium, broad and slender, (4-5 x 5s x } 2 inches), 

 containing 5-6 seeds per pod. Shape flat, long ovate in cross- 

 section, straight although occasionally scimitar-shaped, straight 

 backed, constricted, not crowded, smooth, filled to the edge but 

 not to the tip and square to truncate on the end. Spur medium 

 long, thick and slightly curved. Suture, placental is flat and carpel- 

 lary, acute. 



Seeds large, 1.4 x 1 x .6 cm., (45-50 per oz.); very broad, 

 short oval, fairly plump to somewhat flattened, long oval thru 

 cross-section; ends rounded but inclined to be wedge-like to some 

 extent. Hilum small, flattened. Color buff (pale pinkish buff), 

 splashed and spotted over the entire surface with deep purple which 

 in older seed becomes black, marked with a narrow yellowish buff 

 eye-ring. 



Woodward. Ref. 4. Gregoiy included Woodward 

 in his list of varieties in 1885. His description stated 

 that this bean was among the " select varieties of former 

 years." From the brief description given it appears to 

 differ from Jordan Self-drier only in having pure white, 

 rather than ivory-white seeds; as it also is late, healthy, 

 vigorous, productive, very tender-podded, and with 

 seeds " round as bullets." These similarities place 

 Woodward as a strain or selection from Lazy Wife rather 

 than as a distinct variety. 



Yellow Cranberry. Refs. 13, 49. Seed of this 

 variety were part of the collection of 100 different kinds 

 of bean seed exhibited before the Massachusetts Horti- 

 cultural Society in 1864. Burr listed the variety in 

 1863, commenting favorably on the productivity of the 

 plant and quality of the pods. It was late for the 

 type, two weeks later than Red Cranberry and a few 

 days later than White Cranberry, producing edible pods 

 in 10 weeks and edible beans about 18 days later. It 

 was hardy and productive, of good quality as string 

 or green shell beans, and the dry beans were equal to 

 White Marrow for baking, although not as good color. 



Plant of medium height, 5 to 6 feet; foliage yellowish green. 

 Pods 5 > z inches long, often " sickle-shaped," ? 4 inch broad, pale 

 green, later becoming cream yellow, shrivelled and irregular. Seeds 

 round-ovoid, ) £ inch long, three-fourths as wide, and as thick, 

 yellow with narrow dark eye-ring. 



Zebra. This is the French representative of 

 Scotia-type beans, raised by Mons. Perrier of France 



about the middle of the past century. It was noticed 

 in the United States in 1856, grown by Irish about 1900, 

 and has been listed in England and Australia. 



Vines tall, very vigorous, with abundant dark grayish green 

 foliage, flowers light lilac. Pods short, fleshy, round (Irish says 

 wide, " Much flattened "), slightly curved, practically stringless 

 and fiberless, and of very good quality. Seeds like those of Scotia, 

 but larger, distinctly ovoid and very plump. 



WAX PODS 



Algiers. Refs. 98. This name is usually found in 

 connection with a strain of German Black Wax or Indian 

 Chief. In France it is known as D'Alger Noir a Rames 

 and as such is considered a synonym of the varieties 

 mentioned above. At Geneva in 1884 the plants grown 

 as Algiers proved to be entirely unlike D'Alger Noir, 

 differing in some ways from any other variety in the 

 trial. 



Plant slender, moderately tall; pods very broad, much 

 wrinkled. Seeds large, 75 to the ounce, oblong, very broad, strongly 

 flattened sidewise, often transversely bent by the wrinkling of the 

 pod, jet black, shining. 



American Wax. Refs. 28, 47. A variety that is 

 quite similar to Black Scimitar, very late in season. It 

 was described by Irish but is unknown in present day 

 listings. 



Plant rather small; leaflets light green, small, thick, crumpled, 

 wrinkled. Flowers purple. Pods shorter than those of Black 

 Scimitar or White Zulu, 4 to 6 inches long, much more curved, 

 broad, flat, with proportionately longer, slender, curved tips, green- 

 ish yellow (strongly striped or tinted violet, — Denaiffe). Seeds 

 like those of Black Scimitar, but more irregular, dull, not shining, 

 black or dull brown. 



Andalusia. Refs. 45, 48, 63, 79, 91. Syns. Golden 

 Andalusia, Golden Lazy Wife. Johnson 8b Stokes 

 secured seed of this variety from a bean grower at 

 Andalusia, Pa., gave it the name of the town and intro- 

 duced it in their catalog of 1888. Andalusia, or Golden 

 Lazy Wife, was a midseason variety, very productive, 

 and only slightly affected by disease. It was fairly 

 popular for a time, being listed by about 25 firms in 

 1901; but has now disappeared from catalogs. In 

 many of its characteristics it closely resembles Indian 

 Chief, but is nearly a week later and has pods that are 

 shorter, much more curved, deeper yellow, and with a 

 longer spur. 



Moore's New Golden Lazy Wife, introduced in 

 1923, is evidently only a small-podded, small-seeded 

 type of Golden Cluster. 



Plant large, well branched, climbing well when fully estab- 

 lished, with light-colored, thick stems; foliage light green. Pods 

 medium size, about 5 inches long, much curved, rather flat at best 

 snap stage, later becoming almost round, plump, somewhat swollen 

 over beans and constricted between them, with short -rounded or 

 almost blunt ends and rather short, straight central tips, clear rich 

 yellow. Seeds 6 or 7 crowded in pods, less spherical than those of 

 Lazy Wife, nearly as wide as long, but somewhat flattened, dis- 

 tinctly ovate in longitudinal section, with well rounded eyes, white. 



Baldwin Wonder Wax. Refs. 65. Syns. Kidney 

 Shaped Wax Pole. This is a pole bean introduced in 

 1915 by D. M. Ferry from seed secured from a Mr. 

 Baldwin of West Virginia. The young pods are long, 

 cylindrical, of a clear waxy white, very small, and string- 



