Interview with Ms. Painted Lady Runner Bean

Interview with Ms. Painted Lady Runner Bean

Pam: Good Morning Ms. Painted Lady Runner Bean.

Painted Lady: Hello, Pam. Please call me Painted Lady.

Pam: Thank you, Painted Lady. You’re a new variety at the White Bear Lake Seed Library. Could you tell us a little about yourself?

Painted Lady: As you can see from my wonderful photo, I’m quite a looker! My flowers are two shades of pink and I have the most fabulous speckled beans. Certainly rivals Mr. Scarlet Runner Bean any day!

Pam: Yes, I can see how lovely your flowers are.

 

 

Painted Lady: (Blushes) The hummingbird moth is very attracted to my blooms!

Pam: Uh, right. So I’m told your official name is Phaseolus coccineus. The Phaseolus  genus includes all the common beans, isn’t that right?

Painted Lady: I assure you I come from much more royal stock than the common bean! Why, have you ever seen a common bean with flowers like mine?

Pam: No, of course not Painted Lady. I didn’t mean to imply you were in any way common.

Painted Lady: The common bean is just for eating, whereas I am valued for my lovely flowers as well as my edible beans. Why, you can even eat my flowers! Though why anyone would waste such beauty is beyond me!

Pam: (rolling eyes) I did a little research on your ancestry and found that Friar Antonio de Arrabida described your species in Flora of Rio de Janeiro in 1827.

Painted Lady: Why yes. I originated in Central America, though I am all over the world now. In fact, in Greece one of my relatives with white blossom and white beans are grown under protective law in northern Greece. Her beans are very important in Greek cuisine. They eat them in Gigandes plaki.

 

Pam: So my gardener friends would like to know where you prefer to live.

Painted Lady: I enjoy sun, as much sun as possible as I come from warmer climates, you know. And, of course, I need a place to run my vigorous vines and to show off my gorgeous flowers.

Pam: So you need full sun and a trellis, right?

Painted Lady: Certainly! Also, I prefer that the ground is nice and warm before planting my seeds. And it goes without saying that I can’t handle any frost!

Pam: Yes, of course.

Painted Lady: If you treat me right, I’ll bloom for you in about 2 months.

Pam: Wonderful! Thank you Painted Lady for your time. I would like to add that the White Bear Lake Seed Library has several packets of your lovely beans for gardeners to grow this year. I hope that many do and harvest your lovely speckled beans to return to the seed library.

Painted Lady: Your welcome, Pam. I enjoyed showing your gardeners what a great plant I am!

Photo credits: seedsavers.org, Wikipedia.org

Next Seed Talk March 12th!

Hello Gardeners!

I was inspired after attending the Wild Ones, Design With Nature Conference on Feb 16th, http://www.designwithnatureconference.org/. I just love this conference and look forward to it all year!  Not only because its during the cold month of February, but it always has great speakers and lots of informative booths on plants and growing. Many wonderful books for sale and a great silent auction as well as a tasty lunch and snacks to entertain me all day.

I want to share some information from one of the speakers, Larry Weaner, a landscape designer.

Instead of designing your gardens with a layer of wood mulch between the plants, select short lived plants or ground covers to fill in the spaces. Not only will it suppress weeds, similar to what mulch does, but it can attract pollinators and it certainly will add beauty to your landscape. And you know my views on cypress mulch--don't! Many of Minnesota's solitary native bees require bare soil to make their nests. When all available soil is covered with mulch or sod, there is no place for the bees to make their home. (Note: I am not talking about wasps which make ground hives. These are solitary bees, not social bees or wasps that live in large groups.) These native bees leave people alone and are probably more scared of you then you are of them!

For example, lets say you start some native shrubs in a border or grouping. Also plant some Rudbeckia plants between the small shrubs. The Rudbeckia will bloom right away while the shrubs are starting out. By the time the shrubs grow larger and bloom the Rudbeckia will have died out and your shrub border will look terrific.

Larry is the co-author of Garden Revolution: How Our Landscapes Can Be a Source of Environmental Change with Tom Christopher (Timber Press, 2016). Their book received a 2017 Book Award from the American Horticultural Society

I'll share other information from the conference in future emails.

The next Seed Talk is Tuesday, March 12th at 6:30pm at the White Bear Lake library. The topics are 'Container Gardening' and 'How and When to Start Seeds'. These are sharing discussion events so bring your tips, techniques and questions to share!

Note: As we experienced the last couple weeks, the weather may be unsuitable for driving. If so, I will cancel the Seed Talk. If you have any doubts, please call the library before coming.

Seed Talk, Tuesday Feb 12th, 6:30pm WBL Library

Hello Gardeners,

I added a new feature to my property--an ice skating rink!!

a.k.a my driveway :(

Hope you are getting through the winter. We had it easy for a long while, which makes this recent cold, ice and snow all the more difficult to take. But remember, without Winter, Spring would seem less sweet!

Our next community Seed Talk is in a week, Tuesday, Feb 12th at 6:30pm in the White Bear Lake branch of the library.

I have two topics we can talk about:

1) Container gardening

2) How and when to start seeds

I know there are some of you who expressed an interest in learning how to grow plants in containers, so we'll tackle this subject. And there are always people who want to learn how to start seeds.

Seed Talks are a way for all of us to contribute, so bring your tips, tricks and questions. Enjoy the warm inside time with fellow gardeners. All gardeners from novice to expert welcome!

Note: As we experienced recently, weather may be problematic. If it looks like it will be difficult to travel, I will reschedule the Seed Talk. If you are uncertain, please call the library before coming.

Lose yourself in a seed catalog while the snow and cold rage outside,

Pam

Seeds Need a Good Home!

A want to give a BIG, BIG Thank You to all the volunteers who helped package seeds on Wednesday! It was a record turnout of at least 16 people! Wow!

We packaged up almost 500 packets of seeds and guess where they are now? That's right--the seed drawers in at the Seed Library. :)

Tomatoes (over 50 varieties), beans, peas, lettuce, annuals, herbs, native plants and other vegetable seeds are waiting for good homes.

I still have some lettuce, pepper and annual seeds left to package. I'm not sure there is enough for another seed packaging date, but I'll let you know soon.

Also coming up is the next Seed Talk on Tuesday, Feb  12, 2019 at 6:30pm at the White Bear Lake library. The topics of discussion are container gardening and when to start seeds indoors. I'll remind you closer to the date, but mark your calendar now. Seed Talks are a way for all of us to share our knowledge and ideas with other community gardeners, so please feel free to attend whether you are an experienced or a novice gardener or somewhere in between.

Just note that during the winter months it may be necessary to cancel a meeting due to weather. I will contact the library if that is the case, but if travel seems questionable, please call the library before you attend.

Pam