I'm interested in growing a variety of bean called "Anasazi" next year. I'm fairly new at all this - I had great success this year with another variety of bean that my neighbour gave me to grow... Can I grow the Anasazi beans from the beans that you buy to eat? Or have they been processed so they won't germinate??? If I can't use those, where can I locally by specialty bean "seeds"?? (these guys are hard enough to buy for eating, let alone for growing).
do you have any left on the plants you grew? if you do, let them dry on the vine and when the pods are dried you can take the seeds out and save them to plant next summer.
Ahh - no - to clarify - the beans I grew this year were *not* Anasazi - I was just mentioning them as evidence that beans do grow well where I am (east side, Van. city). - I'm editing my original post to make the distinction.
There are a number of commercial seed sellers for bean varieties, but if you're looking for heirloom or heritage varieties, keep an eye on the Seedy Saturday site - I'm sure they'll post their 2008 event list in the next couple months.
To answer your question regarding the use of beans bought for eating as seed, if you are talking about dried beans, yes it is possible although germination may or may not be good. Seed beans are often treated with preservatives that make them not fit for human consumption, but beans that are destined for use as food are not treated. The problem is that you do not know if they have been kept under proper conditions or if they are years old. You can test them for germination by placing a few on a saucer between moist paper towels and covered with plastic wrap-- if most germinate within a few days, you have usable seed. Skeet
