I grew some "pea-beans" from Tuckers this year - they were OK but
not delicious as green beans, but very good as dried ones (pretty,
too). And they have ripened BETTER than borlotti beans.

I suspect that they are a variety of lablab bean, but can find
very little that clarifies what on earth the taxonomy of that
generic grouping is believed to be this week (yes, I know that
Lablab has been subsumed in Dolichos, and Dolichos has been split
from Phaseolus, but that's all), or how to distinguish Dolichos
from Phaseolus at all reliably.

This is a bit surprising, considering the economic importance of
those genera. It is possible that I have failed to find the
kernel of information in the morass of dross that is the Internet,
but my books aren't much more use.

Does anyone else grow lablab in the UK and, if so, of what type?

And, since I grew them without trouble or special attention in
the UK, and they have been grown in India since time immemorial,
why on earth were they not imported here as a staple before?
They aren't a lot better than broad beans for that, but are as
good.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.