We recently moved into an old farm east of Stettler (Central Alberta prairie). The previous occupants have passed away and I found this jar of odd looking seeds (odd to me) in a quonset. Obviously they have wintered at least 2 winters in this open jar in an unheated quonset. Being the inquisitive type, my wife planted about 6 in soil in our indoor garden yesterday. It might be benefical if we had a clue as to what they are. They are unfamiliar to me (not that I am a seed guru by any stretch!) and certainly do not look like anything I have ever had occasion to plant before. We are thinking some kind of tree, due to their size (note the fortune cookie in the attached picture - standard sized!), but since there are so many seeds in the jar, and trees are not abundant here (apart from poplar, birch and pine), we are perplexed? And no, I did not trade a cow for them at market...Any help?
They look like beans to me - see if any of them come up. The Fabaceae is a huge family - it will help us to ID them when they sprout. The broad-beans I buy in market here are about that size, so they're not necessarily a tree.
Thanks for the quick response Lorax! I will post any results from the planting for any further identification. GreenGenes
I was going to say Castor beans but there seems no reticulation on the skins. ... maybe we should ask Jack just in case? Bob
Green genes, Have you thought of Horse beans aka Vicia faba or fava beans? They look like some of the ones I saw when I googled horse beans. I had an envelope full of black beans w/ pink stripes. I only knew them as "Grandma's beans". Later was told they were scarlet runners. I'd had them for years but they still germinated so plant some and see what happens. Let us know what you find out. Barbara Lloyd
Do they look like this up close? These are fava Beans. I left out the Chianti etc for this picture.;-) Bob http://www.gardenhelp.org/food/fava-bean-cover-crops-in-seattle/
Hey everyone! Thanks for the input! Especially Bob - my wife had the same observation when they were suggested as Fava beans! For those who mised the point, you have to watch "Silence of the Lambs". We have no Chianti, and there are certainly no spare brians in this household... In the meantime, my wife did plant about 6 of them, and this morning, two have started to break the soil. If they are indeed beans, I should have some seedling pictures to post within a few days, if they are some non-indigenous large hardwood tree, the pictures may not be available for 3 - 5 years... Thanks again! GreenGenes
If they're some large indigenous hardwood tree, you'll know from the first pair of leaves! And given the growth rate of tree seedlings from this family, you might only have to wait a few months. This said, I'm reasonable sure they're broad beans, although why you'd want to eat Brians is beyond me. Most of the ones I know are a bit stringy.
I agree lorax, they are likely beans, but as hope springs eternal with many gardeners, I was hoping for some obscure rare plant. We'll see in a few days. Btw, the picture posted by Bob (thank you very much) is simlar, except my seeds weren't moulting like the picture. Up in this harsher growing zone, most of the brains are woody and dormant most of the winter...
The picture Bob posted was cooked fava beans, lol! They don't slough like that unless they've been boiled.
Drat! That's prolly why they didn't germinate too! To think I traded a cow for them! Could you give me a B- for proper size, shape and colour? ;-) They are actually seeds of the Truffula Trees Bob
OK, Bob - you got me. I searched extensively as I thought I had heard the name "Truffula Tree", and thought maybe this was the exotic I was hoping for. Yeah, it's exotic all righty... In my research I think I did discover where lorax's handle came from as well. Wow, this gardening thing is way more complex than I thought! I have to dig out my old Dr. Suess books to get up to speed here. I'm bumping your B- to a C+ for wasting nearly 0.0011 seconds of search engine time on Google... Don
I understand that. Despite my minimal gardening experience, I have learned that a sense of humor is necessary. Especially looking outside on a day like today (-25 with a foot of fresh drifitng snow!) My wife understands that too - like last summer when I mowed her sweet peas (twice), and the dogs turned them into one of their favorite peeing spots. Despite that (or because of that) we had some of the hardiest and most fragrant sweet peas well past frost last year. Don
The thing that will really make you giggle, GreenGenes, is that I'm originally from just a bit further North than Fort Mud, although I lived in Edmonchuk for some time as well. I'm not a serious activist - I try to be as lighthearted as possible, actually. It's just that I'll have more effect speaking for the trees down here where there still are some left. And it doesn't hurt to leave the snow and cold behind, neither. Bob - You had truffula seeds and you ate them? For shame!
Hi Lorax! I fully support any efforts to reduce clear cutting and have special attachments to some old growth forests in the interior of BC. The forestry industries, especially in non-regulated regions (Ecuador?) practice "short term gain for long term pain" business, in my opinion. Say hello to the trees there for me...
OK, of the 8 seeds we planted 12 days ago, we now have 6 sprouting (the first ones broke ground after 5 days). Pretty hardy little units considering they were in an open container in the freezing cold at least 2 winters, and likely more than 5. As promised, I have included 3 pictures since the leaves have begun opening. I am hoping someone can verify whether this is indeed a broad bean (Fava?), Truffula Tree, or something else. At the rate they are growing they should be about 70 feet tall when spring arrives. Don
They sure look like the Favas I've grown in the past, GreenGenes! You might want to give them something to climb on, ie a piece of string suspended from the ceiling or some similar support - I say string so that when spring finally shows itself, you can just cut it off above the top of the bean and transport both outdoors (and then wrap the string around the bean-poles or trellis you have set up.) They're not poofy enough to be Truffula Trees.
