Generations of lablab

I had given up on starting my own seedlings.  Despite a grow light and a cozy spot over the radiator, my seedlings were always spindly, leggy, wan specimens.  Last spring I purchased a dozen varieties of tomato seedlings from our farmers market, as well as lunchbox peppers and various herbs.  Eggplant, zinnia and cosmos starts from our garden supply store rounded out my seedling needs, I seeded the rest directly in the beds.  

As you can see from the photograph, I started a handful of seedlings after all.  My mom visited about five weeks ago and brought a special gift: an array of zinnia varieties and Moonshadow Hyacinth Beans.  My grandmother (her mother) grew an ornamental swath of Moonshadow Hyacinth, Dolichos lablab, along her lattice-lined walkway each summer.  The abundant vines were covered in brilliant purple-blue flowers which became deep purple bean pods.  My mom found these seeds, grown by Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds on a recent trip to Terrain.  Baker Creek’s website cautions against eating the pods when large (they may be poisonous!) and to instead harvest when small and use in curries and stir fries.  According to Baker Creek, Thomas Jefferson grew the bean at Monticello.

So on a Sunday morning in spring, we planted seedlings together.  

One tip I learned this year from a dear garden friend: water your seedlings with a mixture of fish emulsion once they have established themselves.  Her theory is that most seed starting mix does not have much in the way of nutrients.  The fish emulsion gives them a needed boost to thicken their stems before heading to the outdoors.

For years my mom grew this bean (which I recall my grandma referring to as lablab) from my grandmother’s saved seed.  Somewhere along the line either the crop failed to produce pods or my mom did not save them.  Now, this unexpected gift can begin the tradition once more.