Canadian Wonder

The bean pods have been hanging around in the kitchen for a few weeks in their string bags.  It is the ideal place because they keep getting bumped  (either on purpose or accidentally) as people pass underneath. This ensures the air circulates between the pods. As the pods dry out they straighten out and start falling through the gaps in the string bag. Any fallen pods get returned to the top of the pile.  Once they start to open up of their own accord it's time to take them down and pod the lot.  

If you pod them before the pods have dried the beans are prone to mould.  I think there must be some inhibitor in the pod lining that stops that.

The podded beans are popped in a jar for storage until required for Chilli con Beany or Bean Dip at a later date.

Hanging Around

Today

A Week Ago

Some progress to report on the greenhouse ripening of outdoor tomatoes.  Sungold: Over a dozen ripened.  Stripey: two have started blushing Sam Marzano: all green.

There is another crop currently hanging around.

These are Canadian Wonder Bean pods.  With the weather turning cold and wet there is the distinct danger of them going mouldy outside so I've picked any mature pods and brought them indoors to hang off the kitchen airer  in these string bags which are ideal for the purpose. They should be ready for podding in a couple of weeks but I will leave them for a month to ensure the beans have dried out properly before podding them.

Together with the Onions and Garlic crops there's a lot of hanging around at this time of year!

Full of Beans

Today I shelled out the Canadian Wonder beans

Canadian Wonder

 It's been a good crop (last year they flopped - literally and the crop was lost)

Bean there...

 They have been drying for a week or two in their pods:

Dried Bean Pods

I maybe should have waited a bit longer before de-podding them, but I got fed up with them hanging around:

Drying in the bag

So although the runner beans have come to an end we will be enjoying our home grown beans for a while yet.