Polish Eagle Bean: Symbol of Freedom
Beans are political. I discovered this several years ago when visiting my family village in the foothills of the Tatra mountains of southern Poland. One of my numerous cousins was visiting the family house and passed on a packet of beans to his brother with great...
Good Mother Stallard: Beautiful and Bountiful
Pictures and words on websites are great for attracting attention and providing a bit of guidance to the choice of varieties. Perusing the well-known and highly reliable Rancho Gordo’s website (https://www.ranchogordo.com/collections/heirloom-beans ) from...
Annie Jackson Pole Bean: astounding yields
Richard J. Hebda and Tina Davies of Emmerdale Eden Farm There are so many bean varieties available from around the world, how does one choose what to grow? One criterion has to be the dry seed yield of the variety. Emmerdale Eden Farm of Summerside, Prince...
Marvellous Mayocoba: Many names, Many uses
Community markets are a great place to obtain interesting varieties of beans. My sister, Lucy Hebda, on a visit to Sayulita in Nayarit western Mexico, picked up a few seeds of a pretty yellowish bean called ‘Frijol de Peru’ and brought it for me to grow. According to...
Yellow Eye: Attractive but Diverse
Sometimes the common name of a plant variety covers too much territory! The colloquial name of this common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) describes its key characteristic, a yellowish eye or variation thereof around the scar. This feature results in an attractive seed but...Potatoes In The News
Gardening and Climate Change
This video by professor and botanist Dr. Richard Hebda looks at ways to mitigate and adapt to climate change within your garden. He specifically focuses on water managed landscape techniques, techniques for preparing excellent soils, the advantages of diverse and dense plantings, and the (numerous) benefits of mulch!
For more great gardening resources: www.growingfood-together.com
How Peru’s potato museum could stave off world food crisis
Read the Guardian article here.
With a climate changing faster than most crops can adapt and food security under threat around the world, scientists have found hope in a living museum dedicated to a staple eaten by millions daily: the humble potato
This spud’s for you: A breeding revolution could unleash the potential of potato
Potatoes that are resilient in the face of climate change is more important forever. This article talks of some of the challenges of breeding and selecting climate-smart potatoes.
Unleashing the potential of the potato
News from the Blog
Starting with 2 potatoes, in two years, Scott Harris harvests 120 pounds!
Read about Scott's success growing Ozette-Nootka potatoes in Metchosin, BC.