The dreaded Polar Vortex has arrived here in our part of the world, bringing frigid temperatures usually not seen until the depths of winter. I know we don’t have it as bad here as do folks to our north, but still it is way colder than normal for early November. Today’s high is forecast for 33°F, with lows tonight dipping down around 20°F. The wind is also blowing at a nice clip, making the windchill even colder. My response to that is to stay indoors!
shelling Rattlesnake pole beans
I am hoping to finish shelling the dried pole beans today. I grew three varieties this year, Trail of Tears, Good Mother Stallard and Rattlesnake. All three produce beans throughout the growing season, which means the harvests and shelling go on for a while too. Most of the beans I am shelling today came from cleaning the last pods from the vines before we had our first killing frost.
Good Mother Stallard beans
These pole beans seem to not have done quite as well as they did last year, but they still made a lot of beans for us to eat. I’ll weigh them up when I am through shelling. Last year I got 44 ounces of dried pole beans from the same three varieties. Of course that isn’t necessarily the most productive use of garden space, but the beans are nice to have and I know I will enjoy eating them. If you do have plenty of garden space though, the legumes are a great source for homegrown vegetable protein.
This weekend is the time for our annual pilgrimage to the Ferdinand, Indiana Cristkindlmarkt where, among other things, they sell Springerle cookies. I am thinking we will be bundled up more so than usual this year! So how about you all, is the Polar Vortex changing your plans?
It is coming our way tomorrow. We have had some really nice temperatures this week so far though. We had a couple of days in the 60s. Tomorrow will just be in the low 40s though and dip into the mid 20s at night. Brrr. It is cold for mid November, but that being said I remember the garden freezing in mid November often enough. I’ve had to make sure my roots were all picked so they wouldn’t be frozen in to the ground.
The space required for dry beans isn’t the most productive but always well worth it. There’s nothing like homegrown beans, they are tastier and more tender than anything you can buy. Oh boy, am I glad I’m not in the path of the PV, the weather here is still pretty mild, (knock wood). We even had a tomato salad with a fresh picked (tho slightly bird pecked) late ripening specimen tonight. Keep warm!
The cold has also arrived in Hudson Valley. We got about two inches snow last night! Stay warm!
We got 5 inches of snow here last night!
This is my first year growing pole beans…and a Three Sisters Garden. I chose Trail of Tears. I’m Happy with the results and will grow again even if I should choose not to grow the TSG again. My Hickory King Corn didn’t provide much to climb on and what a jungle! My Mother-in-Law and her Sister have been shelling the beans as they dry out. They’re up and over a pound now and should end up between two and three pounds when/if they ever dry up. I’m happy enough with the results that I will probably grow more varieties next year outside a possible TSG so that I can eat a few fresh as well. The Hi-Desert of SoCal hasn’t been hit by the PV quite yet, but we did get our killer frost (as far as the beans, squash, and eggplants were concerned) one sudden night…then we shot back up into the 80’s for for a bit.
It sounds like the Trail of Tears really produced in your garden! I love the taste of it, but it just doesn’t seem to be happy here. The pole snap beans did great this year, so I can’t blame the soil or the weather. It’s another one of the mysteries of gardening!