Tongue Of Fire – Bean Seed

A market standout with striking red-streaked pods.
The fresh shell beans are large and round. The 6-7" stringless pods can be eaten and marketed young as snap beans. These Italian beans retain their flavor whether fresh, frozen, or canned. Original stock seeds collected at the southern tip of South America, in Tierra del Fuego. Also of superior quality as a dry bean. Avg. 850 seeds/lb. Packet: 100 seeds.

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Phaseolus vulgaris
CULTURE: Choose well-drained soil with a pH above 6.0. After the last frost date sow seeds directly into the garden soil about 2" apart, 1" deep, in rows 20–36" apart. Optimum soil temperature for germination is 70–90°F (21–32°C). Plant when daytime soil temperatures average at least 60°F (16°C), or risk poor germination. Inoculants can increase yields. For a continuous supply make successive sowings every 2–3 weeks through midsummer. Do not thin. Dark-colored seeds germinate better in cool soil than white seeds.
DISEASES: Plow under or remove and compost bean straw in the fall to hasten destruction of most disease organisms. For sclerotinia white mold control, plant at wider row spacing to promote drying of plant leaves and soil. Practice a three-year crop rotation, preferably into corn or grain crops. All our fresh shell bean seeds are halo blight-free.
INSECT PESTS: Mexican bean beetles can be controlled with insecticides such as pyrethrin or azadirachtin.
HARVEST: Harvest regularly to encourage new pod set. Ready to pick when beans are plump inside pods.
STORAGE: Store at 40°F (5°C) and 90% relative humidity for 7–10 days.
SEEDING RATE: Italian: 1 lb./150′, 10 lb./1,000′, 145 lb./acre at 3′ between rows. French: 1 lb./300′, 5 lb./1,000′, 72 lb./acre.
SEED SPECS: SEEDS/LB.: Italian: avg. 850. French: avg. 2,200.
PACKET: Italian and French: 100 seeds, sows 14′.