Content
Beans are a crop of the legume family. It is believed that Columbus brought it to Europe, like many other plants, and America is the homeland of beans. Today, this type of legume is very popular, because in terms of the content of amino acids, vitamins and microelements, in terms of its composition, beans are more close to meat than other crops.
There are many varieties of beans, this culture is divided according to several characteristics:
- the way of eating (pods or seeds, beans);
- type of plant (bush and climbing varieties);
- growing method (for open ground and for greenhouses);
- taste characteristics;
- color and shape of fruits / pods.
How to choose the best varieties of beans for your site, you can learn from this article.
Types of legumes
By the appearance and shape of the bush, the culture is divided into:
- bush;
- curly;
- half-shuddering.
Bush beans - a low-growing subspecies with compact bushes, the height of which reaches 40-60 cm. It is these plants that are grown in farm fields, used for industrial purposes. Plants are unpretentious and cold-resistant, bush beans can even withstand the harsh Siberian climate. Bushes begin to bear fruit early, amicably giving away the entire crop.
Curly species are weaving vines, the length of which can reach five meters. This variety has a longer growing season, so in cold Siberia it is better not to grow such varieties of beans in the open field - the seeds simply do not have time to ripen. But curly varieties significantly save space on the site - you can get a decent harvest from one meter of land. In addition, curly lianas become an excellent decoration for the local and garden areas.
Vegetable and grain beans
Another characteristic of a legume depends on the form in which the plant is used for food. If only seeds are eaten - beans, it is a grain variety or hulling. When the whole pod is eaten, this variety is called asparagus or vegetable.
Vegetable beans also called sugar, they can be eaten whole, due to the fact that the pod flaps are not covered with a hard wax coating either in a mature or in a "young" state. The whole pod with peas inside remains soft and tender. Such beans are suitable for freezing, preparing various dishes, as well as for canning.
Peeling varieties must be husked to extract mature beans. The pods of such a culture are unsuitable for food - they are too tough and tasteless. But the beans are distinguished by excellent taste, interesting appearance and special nutritional value.
There are also semi-sugar varieties, which in an unripe form have the properties of asparagus beans, and after full ripening they can be attributed to the group of shelling beans. The pod of this variety is tender and juicy until the seeds inside it are ripe. However, after the beans have ripened, the pod becomes covered with a hard waxy layer and becomes very tough.
Varieties of beans
Beans are also classified according to their appearance, taste, and nutritional properties. Taking these factors into account, the following groups of legumes can be distinguished:
- Navy - white small-fruited beans. Seeds of this species are outwardly similar to peas, they are just as small and round. Navy is the record holder for fiber content, also contains vitamins A, B, PP, C and K, E.
- Lima - oily beans of white or green hue. The shape of the beans is slightly flattened, the size is large. The variety is very useful for blood vessels and heart.
- Kidney - red beans, the seeds of which are similar in shape to a kidney. The color of these beans is red, purple.
- Black beans has a dark skin and a snow-white interior. The peas are small, rounded. After boiling, these beans lose their shape. Black beans contain the maximum amount of protein, prevents the formation of malignant tumors.
- Green beans - tolerates freezing well, retaining all the nutrients and vitamins. The pods can be of different shades: green, purple, yellow, beige. These varieties contain a large amount of vitamins, but the protein in the pods is less than in the beans.
- Pinto - spotted variety, white base with reddish spots. The variegated color of the beans becomes uniform after the beans are cooked. Contains a lot of iron, therefore it is recommended for anemia and diseases of the heart, immune system.
- Flajolet - is used unripe. The beans are green in color and taste similar to green beans.
- Chali - large white beans. They contain a lot of calcium and potassium, have antimicrobial and wound healing effects.
- Vigna more commonly referred to as "Black Eye". These are white beans with a black "eye" on the side. The skins of these varieties are thinner, so you will have to cook the beans less (about 40 minutes without soaking).
- Fava can be used as pods or as ripe beans. The seeds are large, slightly flattened, colored brownish brown.
The listed varieties are most often used in European dishes. For Asian and Indian cuisine, there are many more varieties of beans with a specific aroma and taste (from sweet to spicy, herbal).
Bean varieties with descriptions and photos
On the territory of Russia, about 50 of the currently known varieties of beans can be grown. All of them have their own characteristics and advantages, the most popular will be described below.
Shrub asparagus varieties
The cultivation of green beans is still a curiosity for Russia. Here, the use of green seed pods with beans began not so long ago. However, local gardeners already have their favorite asparagus varieties:
- "Saksa" it is considered an early ripening variety, you can eat the pods as early as 50 days after planting the seeds in the ground. The length of the pods reaches 12 cm, inside they are pink beans. The bushes grow compact, their height does not exceed 40 cm.
- "Oil King" also ripens relatively early - 50 days after planting the seeds. The pods are larger and longer - about 25 cm, colored yellow. The variety of beans is intended for canning and cooking.
- "Purple Queen" differs in average ripening periods. It can be grown on absolutely any soil, as it is a very unpretentious plant. 15 cm pods are painted in a beautiful purple hue, the variety is intended for canning.
- "Panther" has an average ripening period. Differs in yellow pods, intended for cooking and canning.
Curly sugar varieties
Long vines shade the plot well; they can be grown not only in greenhouses and garden beds. They can be used to decorate gazebos, verandas, fences and wattle.
In addition to beautiful large leaves and bright pods, beans are also distinguished by decorative flowering of white, pink, lilac and other shades.
Of the climbing legume varieties suitable for the Russian climate, the following can be noted:
- "Melody" is a legume with early ripening (50-60 days after planting seeds in the ground). The length of the pods is average - about 13-15 cm.
- "Golden nectar" strikes with amazing bright yellow pods, the length of which often exceeds 25 cm. The beans are mid-season, the beans ripen by the 70th day after sowing the seeds.
- "Winner" is one of the most decorative, yet edible beans. During the flowering period, the bushes are decorated with bright red flowers, and the legumes bear fruit with long green pods, a little flattened in shape. The ripening period for beans is about three months.
Semi-sugar bean varieties
These beans can be eaten in pods or shelled. The main thing is not to waste time, and to reap the harvest before it is overripe. Of these varieties, you can name:
- "Give me a sec", which bears fruit early in yellow pods. Their length does not exceed 12 cm.
- "Welt" produces green pods, about 13 cm long. These beans are great for canning and cooking.
Peeling varieties
These beans cannot be eaten in pods, they only taste good when ripe. Unlike asparagus varieties, shelling fruits are perfectly stored without pre-processing. These beans store the maximum amount of beneficial minerals and vitamins.
The best varieties include:
- "Gribovskaya" beans ripen in three months, have medium pods (about 15 cm) and white beans.
- "Shokoladnitsa" strikes with brown beans. This variety is very resistant to heat, therefore it is recommended to grow this crop in the south of the country.
- "Swallow" represents snow-white beans, decorated with purple specks, the shape of which resembles a swallow.
- "Ruby" yields colored beans with a dark cherry hue. Such fruits will decorate any dish.
How to cook beans
The beans are difficult to cook properly, and this is because the beans have a very dense skin.
If it is enough to boil the leguminous varieties for just a few minutes, then the husked beans require more complex and lengthy processing:
- First, the fruits must be soaked in cold water. This is done for about 6-12 hours (depending on the variety).
- After soaking, the water is drained and replaced with fresh water.
- The beans are boiled in this water until tender, about 1.5-2 hours.
- You don't need to stir the beans while they are boiling.
- To prevent the beans from darkening during cooking, the dishes with them do not need to be covered with a lid.
- Salt the beans at the end of cooking.
The cultivation of legumes is accompanied by the release of nitrogen into the soil. Therefore, the culture does not make the soil "poor", like most other vegetables, but, on the contrary, enriches it with nitrogen and other useful substances.
It is not difficult to grow beans in your own garden - this is an extremely unassuming culture. It is much more difficult to properly cook the harvested beans. It is especially important to cook the beans until fully cooked, because in their raw form they are not only unhealthy, but also poisonous. And in choosing a variety, photos and recommendations from our article will help.
