I have several bean accessions from the USDA GRIN Germplasm Bank, consisting of rare and otherwise commercially unavailable cultivars and landraces, to grow next season. I plan to trial these varieties under my conditions, as I am breeding for shade tolerance in corn. When interplanted with my corn, the beans will be even more shaded. The ones that perform best will be used for manual crossing.
I have two questions I’d like to get others’ input on before making a decision, so please bear with me:
The maximum quantity of seed per variety is 25 seeds per breeder/entity/organization. Prior to approval, the Phaseolus Curator warned me that some of the accessions are over 30 years old but gave me tips to increase my success rate. While I’d be satisfied with a 30-40% germination rate, I’m still concerned about predation before the plants have a chance to reproduce. Would it be worth increasing the seed stock this year to trial a larger population next year?
I’ve heard—though I’m unsure where—that there are two populations of Phaseolus vulgaris (North American and South American) that don’t readily cross. I have a single landrace of day-neutral beans from the Andes Mountains in Argentina that seemed promising based on the database information. Is it true that these populations don’t cross easily or produce vigorous offspring, or am I misremembering?
To get more of special ones in a protected area always has preference for me. The second year ones will have adapted microorganisms on their skin, that’s when you can bring them into your garden. Otherwise predation rates will be much higher.
They won’t feel right from the start and snails for instance will go for those preferably.
A side comment about shade tolerant beans. Carol Deppe recommended “Whitner’s True Cornfield” beans (pole beans) as the only variety she had encountered that was productive in shade. A couple years ago I bought some seed from Peace Seedlings, and it grew and produced interspersed in corn rows.
That is interesting, 3 of my accesions are some variation of cornfield bean. “Genuine Cornfield” “Hastings Genuine Cornfield” “True Cornfield”. Part of the criteria I used for selecting varieties was an association with being planted with corn, or being a pole bean from an indigenous group that practiced three sisters cultivation, so hopefully I have a good Foundation for my work.