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Moonshine Designs Nursery Located in Milan, Illinois 309-756-1967 Fax: 309-756-1058
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Cowpeas and Beans Culture (Tender Annual)
Plant out directly into the garden after all danger of frost is past and soil has warmed 3” apart, 1” deep in rows 24-36” apart. Thin to stand 6-9” apart. May be harvested at the green shell stage when pods are well filled out or left to dry on the plant to harvest for dried beans. Easiest way to shell dried beans: Pull plants and hang upside down away from dew and rain until very dry. Place plants in a burlap bag and wail on it with a plastic baseball bat. This will shatter the pods. Pour the contents out in front of a fan into a bowl or bucket. The beans or peas will fall into the bucket and the fan will blow the left over plant parts away. You may have to repeat the “winnowing” process in front of the fan a couple of times. Store the dried beans or peas in tightly sealed containers. We keep ours in the freezer. Weevils don’t like it in there! When soaking the beans before cooking, be sure to discard the soaking water. 80% of the “gas” from those beans are in this water. If you want to play a mean trick on your neighbor, give the water to his dog..................................... Just kidding…