I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste good -
fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

Bertie

"Bertie Doe" wrote in message
...
I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste
good -
fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

Bertie


I've been growing Blue Lake from the same packet for the last 5 years (it
was a big packet, and they are still good germinators). They are always
fantastically heavy croppers, in both the shaley soil of the last house and
the heavy clay of this one although they foliage is much better on clay than
shale. Like you say, they taste good both fresh and frozen. I've never had
any flat ones produced, always your typical French climbing bean shape (4-6
inches, finger thick, round and tapered at the very end)

I grew a slightly bigger crop this year - two eight foot rows - and have
managed to put several kilos in the freezer, eat loads (got pretty sick of
them if truth be told, almost as bad as the courgettes), and for the first
time I let some develop the beans inside and shelled them for eating - very
nice and tasted more like peas than beans. Also, in anticipation of the old
beans starting to fail to germinate, I let a load fully develop and have
dried and shelled them ready for sowing next year - wish me luck.


Kase

--
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Remove YOURPANTS before replying

On Fri, 04 Nov 2005 22:17:13 GMT, "Bertie Doe" wrote:
I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste good -
fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

No, not usual !

I have grown many "Blue Lake" over the years and never had any go flat
with wavy edges, they should all be long thin round pods. Like this :-
http://www.fothergills.co.uk/en/clim...-lake-321.aspx

I have grown a flat wavy edged climbing bean "Hunter", could that be
what you are describing I wonder ? Like this :-
http://www.fothergills.co.uk/en/clim...unter-320.aspx

Sounds like Fothergills may have had a hiccup in their packaging
machines !?

"Bertie Doe" wrote in message
...
I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste
good -
fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

Bertie

Fothergills also do Purple Queen some of which grow a bit flatter and
knobblier than Blue Lake

http://www.fothergills.co.uk/en/dwar...queen-789.aspx

A few years back I grew a yellow semi climber from Marshalls (can't remember
the name) which produced mixed pencil and flatter beans from the same
packet.


michael adams

....

In article ,
Bertie Doe wrote:
I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste good -
fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

My guess is that they were grown too close to a variety like Barlotta,
the originals are homozygous, and the blue colour and flat shape are
independent, dominant alleles.

If that is the case, growing seeds from the odd beans would produce
a mixture of round blue beans, flat blue beans, round green beans
and flat green beans.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Bertie Doe wrote:
I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste
good -
fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this
usual
for B.Lake? TIA

My guess is that they were grown too close to a variety like Barlotta,
the originals are homozygous, and the blue colour and flat shape are
independent, dominant alleles.

Indeed.

quote

Isolation Requirements. [French]Bean flowers are principally
self-pollinated. Natural crossing however, is more common than peas,
and the extend of cross pollination may vary from two to eight per cent.
The seed field must be isolated from fields of other varieties, and the
same variety not conforming to varietal purity requirements by at least
ten metres for foundation seed production and five metres for certified
seed production.

http://www.seedtamilnadu.com/nfrenchbean.htm

/quote

Given that they're largely self pollinating, I wouldn't have believed
that myself, without checking it out. Isn't the "Interweb" wonderful !

Also you're not the only person who assumed that Blue Lake produce
purple beans, rather than green ones. With their being small and pencil
shaped I never tried them myself and so I made the same mistake. I had
mixed flat and pencil shaped Mont D'Or, bright yellow semi climbers
a few years back from the one packet from Marshalls. However I'd also
had plenty saved from previous years and so used those instead the
next year.


michael adams



If that is the case, growing seeds from the odd beans would produce
a mixture of round blue beans, flat blue beans, round green beans
and flat green beans.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article , Bertie Doe
writes
I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste good -
fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

No - Blue Lake are rounded (and, as you say, lovely flavour). Sounds
like the seed got mixed in packing.
--
Kay
"Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river"

I grew this variety of french climbers for the first time. They taste
good - fresh or frozen.
Strangely, half the plants have produced flat beans with a wavy edge. The
remainder are the rounded type.
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

Bertie

I know everyone seems to be telling you that this isn't normal, but I
noticed something similar when I grew Blue Lake for the first time last year
(seeds from Suttons) and wondered what was going on. Some fruits seemed
distinctly flatter than others - more like runner beans in cross section
(though not quite as flat). I wasn't too worried about it, though as they
cropped well enough.

I grew them again this year, but didn't notice such a variation (but only
had 5 plants, so that may just have been a matter of chance). These 5 plants
yielded 2.8kg (which seems good to me, though I expect there'll soon be a
chorus of responses asking how I managed such a poor yield!) - still a few
to be picked, but I've more or less given up on them now, despite this
Indian summer!

The message
from "Ian Keeling" contains these words:

I grew them again this year, but didn't notice such a variation (but only
had 5 plants, so that may just have been a matter of chance). These 5
plants
yielded 2.8kg (which seems good to me, though I expect there'll soon be a
chorus of responses asking how I managed such a poor yield!) - still a few
to be picked, but I've more or less given up on them now, despite this
Indian summer!

It wasn't a good year for beans with me, either. I think I must have
grown three times as many on the same number of palnts as I did last
year.

--
Rusty
horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co full-stop uk
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

Jaques d'Alltrades wrote:
I grew them again this year, but didn't notice such a variation (but only
had 5 plants, so that may just have been a matter of chance). These 5
plants
yielded 2.8kg (which seems good to me, though I expect there'll soon be a
chorus of responses asking how I managed such a poor yield!) - still a few
to be picked, but I've more or less given up on them now, despite this
Indian summer!

It wasn't a good year for beans with me, either. I think I must have
grown three times as many on the same number of palnts as I did last
year.

I've done well on broadbeans this year )
I'm akshually really really happy because I have a 2sqm thick clay bit
at the end of my plot and for 2 years I had done nothing on it.
Desperately at the last moment I had forked in lots and lots of manure
that my neighbour didn't want. I thought I would 'sacrifice' some broad
beans and the result was amazing. We eat them raw - and they were the
bestest I have ever eaten. I just wish my grand ma could have tasted
them. However, I won't do runner beans ever again. I had so many, so
stringy, so 'orrible - the flowers where very huge and were very
pretty, but the beans, even the young ones, were not to our taste.

The message .com
from "La puce" contains these words:
Jaques d'Alltrades wrote:

I grew them again this year, but didn't notice such a variation
(but only
had 5 plants, so that may just have been a matter of chance). These 5
plants
yielded 2.8kg (which seems good to me, though I expect there'll
soon be a
chorus of responses asking how I managed such a poor yield!) -
still a few
to be picked, but I've more or less given up on them now, despite this
Indian summer!

It wasn't a good year for beans with me, either. I think I must have
grown three times as many on the same number of palnts as I did last
year.

I've done well on broadbeans this year )
I'm akshually really really happy because I have a 2sqm thick clay bit
at the end of my plot and for 2 years I had done nothing on it.

Ah. do a little something on it from time to time and it should become
very fertile.

Desperately at the last moment I had forked in lots and lots of manure
that my neighbour didn't want. I thought I would 'sacrifice' some broad
beans and the result was amazing. We eat them raw - and they were the
bestest I have ever eaten. I just wish my grand ma could have tasted
them. However, I won't do runner beans ever again. I had so many, so
stringy, so 'orrible - the flowers where very huge and were very
pretty, but the beans, even the young ones, were not to our taste.

Evidently you didn't get the good old Scarlet Emperor.

There's *NO* vegetable to compare with fresh runner beans.

--
Rusty
horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co full-stop uk
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/

"Jaques d'Alltrades" wrote in message
k...
The message
from "Ian Keeling" contains these words:

I grew them again this year, but didn't notice such a variation (but only
had 5 plants, so that may just have been a matter of chance). These 5
plants
yielded 2.8kg (which seems good to me, though I expect there'll soon be a
chorus of responses asking how I managed such a poor yield!) - still a
few
to be picked, but I've more or less given up on them now, despite this
Indian summer!

It wasn't a good year for beans with me, either. I think I must have
grown three times as many on the same number of palnts as I did last
year.

--
Rusty
horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co full-stop uk

Oh, I didn't think it was all that bad - 2.8kg harvested from 5 seeds??? But
since you mention it, the yield may well have been higher last year - growth
was far denser for sure - but I didn't weigh the crop last year so can't
really compare with this.

"Kay" wrote in message
In article Bertie Doe writes
The seed packet is Fothergills', generic style with no pics. Is this usual
for B.Lake? TIA

No - Blue Lake are rounded (and, as you say, lovely flavour). Sounds
like the seed got mixed in packing.
--
Ok (oh Kay) shouldn't be flat. I grew some French climbers a couple of years
ago called 'Hunter'. These were flat, with a wavy edge, you're right, a mix
during packing.
B.D.

Ian Keeling wrote
I grew them again this year, but didn't notice such a variation (but
only
had 5 plants, so that may just have been a matter of chance). These 5
plants yielded 2.8kg (which seems good to me, though I expect there'll
soon be a
chorus of responses asking how I managed such a poor yield!) - still a
few
to be picked, but I've more or less given up on them now, despite this
Indian summer!

Nope, that's a good yield from 5 plants

Jaques d'Alltrades wrote:
It wasn't a good year for beans with me, either. I think I must have
grown three times as many on the same number of palnts as I did last
year.

Although I planted 2 rows on the allotment, my yield was down over previous.
The late cold-snap's to blame, I goov

"La puce" wrote in message
sni
However, I won't do runner beans ever again. I had so many, so stringy, so
'orrible - the flowers where very huge and were very pretty, but the
beans, even the young ones, were not to our taste.

Try Blue Lake, they're fantastic fresh or frozen. In fact they freeze a lot
better than the traditional English runners. In fact, the taste is similar
to a dwarf bean, but with a much higher yield.
Bertie

The message
from "Bertie Doe" contains these words:

Try Blue Lake, they're fantastic fresh or frozen. In fact they freeze a lot
better than the traditional English runners. In fact, the taste is similar
to a dwarf bean, but with a much higher yield.

The way I freeze runners you'd never know they *HAD* been frozen.

--
Rusty
horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co full-stop uk
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/