Category Archives: pole bean

Jun24

Blueberry Preserves & Green Bean Woes

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Blueberry Preserves & Green Bean Woes

I’m very disappointed in my pole bean teepee. My plants all grew beans on them (I pulled them off yesterday and put them in a quiche) but they are only 1 foot tall!! We have had a month of nothing but rain, almost no sun, which I believe is the culprit. I am hoping once the sun comes out they will take off — and still produce beans??? They are blue lake pole beans which are supposed to be a”renowned pole bean for its stringless, tender pods. 15 cm long. Early. Nice fresh or for freezing and canning. One of the best. 60-65 days.” HAH! As if. These are closer to three months old. Does anyone have any idea what might have gone wrong other than the weather? Ah well. The fava bean plants are doing better — two feet tall, and full of flowers.

Yesterday I made blueberry preserves — they were on a major sale at the market, 4 pints for $5, so each jar cost around $1.00. These are very easy to make, and take about 1 hour.

* Blueberry Preserves *
6 cups washed blueberries
2.5 tsp fresh lemon juice (or Apple Cider Vinegar)
3 Cups Sugar
1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
1/4 Tsp ground nutmeg
1 Vanilla Pod, opened and scrapped into the pot

Combine all ingredients and bring to a boil, cook to gell point. Sir often.
Ladle into hot, prepared half-pint jars. Leave 1/4 inch head space and cap with hot lids. Process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes.
Apr13

Pole Bean Teepee, Mini-greenhouses & DIY Table "Refinishing"

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Pole Bean Teepee, Mini-greenhouses & DIY Table "Refinishing"
Today was quite the project day. In addition to doing a major spring cleaning on the house and gardening outside, Lucas and I put the Blue Lake Pole Beans in around his teepee, protecting them from the chicken all the while, and gave our dining table a facelift. Here are the pics and instructions.
POLE BEAN TEEPEE
Our teepee has nine 8-foot poles cut from saplings, with a wide opening on one side for the doorway. It is tied together at the top with sinew.
Here is one of our bean babies. They sprouted about a week ago. The minute I planted them in the ground the chicken came over and pecked off half a leaf — but I was ready for her!
We’ve been saving milk jugs and other containers all winter and cutting the bottoms off to make mini-greenhouses for our tender seedlings. This will also protect them from Phoenix, our hungry lady!
TABLE – REDO!
This winter I saved Plant catalogs, Better Home & Garden and National Geographic Magazines, and cut the prettiest flower and plant pictures out, including some neat waterfalls and forests from around the world (Thanks NGM!) I saved these up all winter while I watched my cheap IKEA dinner table get more and more scratched up.
Finally, today was a nice warm day with little wind, so I took the table outside and spray-primed it gray (that’s what was on-hand.)
I used a paintbrush and clear acrylic paint as “glue” to paste down the pictures on the table top. The thinner catalogue pages rippled a little bit, but I smoothed them down as best I could. I covered the whole thing with a couple coats of the clear paint, and the used a two-part epoxy “liquid glass” to make a very smooth table top that will resist just about ANYTHING.
Et, Voila! It is particularly nice with these iron chairs we picked up a few years ago at an antique shop. My husband thinks the table is very pretty, if not masculine. Myself, just thinking about this table all winter got me through the dreary days.