Horse Beans

sageadvice · Apr 22, 2016

LAST EDITED ON Apr-22-16 AT 11:17PM (MST)[p]Who has planted and enjoyed Horse Beans, Fava beans? If you never have, try them. Awesome healthy snack fresh from your garden.

Edit: well, no replies yet so being i planned to go into a bit of my past to tell of my Horse Bean history, i'll do so now. Up 8 miles from town, my Grandpa built a Ranch with no neighbors within 2 miles up or down the county road. Within 100 yards of the Ranch House were Almond, walnut, black walnut, pear, winter pear, cherry, 3 kinds of Plum, 2 kinds of apple, and 2 kinds of Fig trees. Grandma tended Kale, Cabbage, black berry, 10 artichoke plants, and a nice mint patch under a drippy faucet. Grandpa took advantage of my willing help to plant his garlic, sweet onions, and horse beans.

The horse beans were easy to grow, at least i thought they were. I planted them about 18" apart in 3 rows about 15 feet long. Lots of Beans, too many really but nice to have them. The plants wre hardy maybe 3 feet tall, the Pods looked like any other pea type pod but were like 10" to over a foot long. Once done growing, id harvest the pods and get the beans out easy enough. Grandma would then boil the beans, looked kinda like monster lima beans but that was the only similarity, for a few minutes to soften and then she would let them cool and then place in a gallon big mouth glass jar.

If we wanted some, we'd ladle out a portion into hand or bowl, bite into the tip of a bean, spit that out, and then further the process of taking off the outside skin by squeezing the back part center of the cold bean to pop the inside out into your mouth. Sweet and nutty, excellent flavor, perfect for a pleasurably snack on the back porch between meals. I can't understand why they are not more popular than they are, good stuff.

Joey

Keep your slimy Paws Off My, Yours, Our,.. Public Land!!!

DW · Apr 22, 2016

Heard of Fava beans of course but knew nothing about em and have never eatin em to my knowledge. Sounds like the grandparents were prepared for anything.

NVBighorn · Apr 23, 2016

I've had?liver with some?fava beans and a nice chianti

BeanMan · Apr 23, 2016

NV, you beat me to it!

They don't grow well in the Grand Junction area, too hot during flowering. They aren't a real bean anyway, just a mere vetch.

sageadvice · Apr 23, 2016

LAST EDITED ON Apr-23-16 AT 08:10AM (MST)[p]BeanMan, maybe you are right but i'm sure that they would do good in a home type garden. We certainly had plenty of Hot temps throughout the season, including thru flowering. Yes, more like a overgrown flat pea from pods than a bean. The skin of the "bean" is inedible IMO, just want the sweet meat inside the beans outer skin. They would go great with those nice big outdoor BBQ's that you have!

Just something to try if you care to guys. Grow like weeds, do require water from time to time but if you can't grow Fava's, you best not grow.

Edit: well i guess so DW though at the time it just seemed like a normal place. In my Dad's years on the Ranch, he was born in that Ranch House, they had a 20 acre Vineyard and Grandpa was known for his Wine making abilities as well as the quality grape juice he sold to big winery's . There was also many hundreds of acres in Barley, Wheat, white and red oats, at least a couple hundred Mother Cows, up nto 800 pairs at one point, a dozen or so Horses, chickens, ducks, geese, and a few turkeys. Dad said he had to milk about a dozen cows every day before school and on weekends. By the time i came around to being a decent hand on the ranch, the vineyard had turned into a wheat field and the Holsteins were long gone but there was always plenty of work to do.

Joey

Keep your slimy Paws Off My, Yours, Our,.. Public Land!!!

DW · Apr 23, 2016

Interesting, the similarities in our history, albeit mine on a much smaller scale. They were prepared for anything because of the things they went thru of course, WW1, the great depression, WW2. But as you said it just seemed normal growing up. My great grandparents came to this country and homesteaded a piece of ground in minnesota shortly after the turn of the last century. They both died there. Grandad was born and died there shortly before grandma. And my dad was born there. We lived 10 miles away growin up, and we we're there every wknd, as you said there was always work to be done. Always farmed some acreage, milked cows for a bit, raised herefords for a bit. Cows were gone before I came along as well, only the stories and a few of the old milk cans. Always horses, including some Suffolks we farmed with just so my brothers and I could know how it used to be done! Grumbled about that part a bit growin up but lookin back I'm more appreciative of it. Always a half dozen apple trees, couple fence lines of grapes for wine makein. Always a big garden with well stocked basement shelves of canned goods from it every fall. Used to love her canned apples, haven't thought of them in awhile. Always chickens for meat and eggs with a half dozen hogs fed out thru the summer to butcher in the fall. A smokehouse for the hams, bacon, and sausage. A woodburner with a pile of seasoned oak ready to go every fall. Woods full of deer and squirrels to chase when the work was done. Loved her fried squirrel too! It wasn't fancy but growin up it was my slice of heaven.

nontypical · Apr 25, 2016

For some reason, my wife won't cook beans for me.

DW · Apr 25, 2016

>For some reason, my wife won't
>cook beans for me.

Beanman says these aren't beans they're vetch's. Hey his name's beanman he can't be wrong on this one!