Wednesday, January 11, 2012

2011 Bean, Leek, Garlic, Onion Reviews

Tendergreen Snap Green Bean - I was happy with this variety.  It grew quickly and provided one main crop with a second picking.  I liked that it was a bush variety and didn't need to be trellised.  The beans were typical green beans with good flavor.

Royal Burgundy Snap Beans - These beans are a wonderful deep purple.  I picked them specifically just for the color.  They were prolific bushy plants.  My only wish is that they held their color when cooked.

Kenearly Yellow & Jacobs Cattle - Both of these drying beans did similarly.  Both had trouble with disease and were spotted with yellow and brown splotches.  The harvest was mediocre.  I have extra seeds so I might try them again but I'm not sure if it is worth the space.  I will have to try the beans soon and decide if they have excellent flavor worth taking up the space.

American Flag Large Leeks - This was my first time growing leeks.  I was overall happy with the final plants.  Some were very large, some skinny.  I still have some in the ground waiting to be picked, I want to see how well they do with in ground winter storage.

California Garlic - This is a soft neck variety that did poorly two years in a row.  Every bulb was tiny and if I was lucky some were small.  I don't ever want to try this variety again.

Yellow Stuttgarter - These onions also did poorly.  All of my onions were tiny and small.  It might be my clay soil, despite the fact that I have amended it and loosened it.  But I am still on the quest for an onion that does great for me.

4 comments:

  1. I never have luck with onions or leeks and they are both crops I would love to have in abundance!! Alas, I will try AGAIN :)

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  2. I haven't had much luck with either of those OR beets! I read on a forum the other day that if your root crops didn't produce well, that you should add Greensand to your garden. It has lots of nutrients. I just added it to the garlic we planted. Let's see how they do.

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  3. I highly recommend Copra if you're looking to try a new variety of onion. I never had much luck with onions until I tried it. I've grown it the past two years, and it has done really well for me so far. I live just west of Cincinnati and have clay soil as well, so we probably have similar growing conditions. I also like Southport Red Globe for a red onion, but it doesn't store very well.

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  4. Allison - I always try things again and again even when I know it won't work. I sometimes wonder when I will learn, but I keep hoping.

    Veggie PAK - I will have to try the greensand. I already planted the garlic but I could use it with onions and leeks.

    Jeannine - Thanks for variety suggestion. Do you start them from seed or set? I normally start my onions from sets because I don't have a good set up inside to start seed. The seeds I start have to be able to be planted in the ground and reach full maturity outside.

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