Heirloom Beans

[ecowper]

So, anybody grow their own beans or buy heirloom beans, rather than going to the store and getting a can of Bushes?

I ask because I just pulled the trigger on a 5 lb sampler pack from Rancho Gordo in Napa, CA. It includes a pound of piquitos, so yes I will be having Tri-Tip and beans!

https://www.ranchogordo.com/

[ComfortablyNumb]

I've grown heirloom beans for quite some time now. I usually get mine from Seeds Savers Exchange. The nice thing is you only purchase them once. After that it is re-plant some of them the next season. BTW, a pound is quite a bit for planting, more than a backyard garden can likely handle. I have a ten acre farm which can easily accommodate several varieties.

[ecowper]

I'm planning on cooking this first batch I've bought .... depending, I may grow beans after that. We already grow heirloom tomatoes.

[RonB]

I grow a field pea, (similar to black-eyed peas), passed down from my paternal grandfather. He was born in 1880 and grew this pea most of his life. My dad started growing it around 1960, and when we built our house, I started growing them in the early 80's.

It was a small pea though, and a bit hard to shell. At some point I realized that my dad was saving the worst for seed, and eating the best. I explained that he was doing it backwards and should be saving the best for seed. Since then the peas have gotten bigger and easier to shell.

[ecowper]

I bought a sampler package from Rancho Gordo ...... I gotta say, these are the bomb. WAY better than canned beans from the store. WAY better than dried beans from the store, actually. I could never figure out why people were using dried beans, I couldn't tell a difference in flavor, consistency, etc.

Got a pot of Texas beans going using Rancho Gordo's Yellow Eyes.

[theroc]

We get pinquito and other heirloom beans from Suncoast Farms in Lompoc, CA. They have a stand at our local farmer's market.
I agree, that these are so much better than anything we've ever found in a store.

[ecowper]

Gonna cook up a mess of pinquitos to have with tri-tip sometime soon.

[theroc]

Somehow, tri-tip just tastes better with pinquito beans.

[ecowper]

I'm thinking that I'm going to cook a tri-tip, make a pot of pinquitos, and get some good, crusty bread. And that's gonna be dinner

[kmhfive]

Looks great!