My Italians/Uncle Steve's

13 years ago

Another comparison

My Italians on the left, Uncle Steve's on the right, more purple streaks as well as a few almost purple pods on Uncle Steve's.

Both these beans are really producing now, my italians were direct seeded in a protected bed earlier than the Uncle Steve's which I started in the greenhouse and planted out later but they have caught up to mine. Looks like Uncle Steve's are another great variety to grow in the PNW.

I did the raw bean taste test this morning, raw both had the same crispness but the Uncle Steve's have a sweetness that's missing in mine.

I'll cook some up later for another comparison but I have a feeling Uncle Steve is going to come out the winner.

Annette

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Comments (3)

rxkeith
13 years ago
i picked a good amount of uncle steves last night. annettes are a little behind them size wise. not enough to pick and cook just yet.
annette, many years i get a plant or 2 with mostly purple beans. the seeds in those pods are nearly purple too. not sure if thats just genetic variation or if something else is going on. those beans tend to be a little smaller than the purple streaked ones.
enjoy the beans

keith
aftermidnight Zone7b B.C. Canada
Original Author
13 years ago
We had both of these beans for dinner last night, Uncle Steve's seemed to hang on to it's sweetness and were quite good, beans were beginning to form in some of the pods and were just a little on the tough side so I'm thinking I picked this lot a little too late, the next picking I'll pick at an earlier stage. My italians turn out to be a meatier bean than Uncle Steve's these cooked up with a touch of crispness and very tender.

I'm really interested to hear how my italians do south of the border, if different growing conditions make a difference, whether they're keepers or not.

Uncle Steve's I will definitely grow again, every time I go past them I have to sample one, they are so crisp and sweet. Tonight I'm going to steam some of the Blue Jay I grew in containers. It's a good job both DH and I love beans we've got lots to try :).

Annette
rxkeith
13 years ago
annette,

uncle steve beans are at there best when the pods just start to swell. wait too long, and they get tough. i cooked a bunch of your beans and cooked them last night, and thought they were pretty good too. i over cooked them just a bit though. i like them al dente. they have a thin skin that comes off similar to my beans. my brittany, aili approves of them too. she ate a few of them. my toy poodle, lempi,,,no thanks.

keith