Why we grow cowpea beans instead of regular grain beans: the best varieties and secrets of successful cultivation

Vigna beans are an excellent grain and vegetable crop. It is sometimes confused with grain beans, but these are completely different types. We have been growing this wonderful crop with long pods for three years now. We use pods for freezing for the winter, prepare soups, stews, filling for pies from them.

Now is the time to choose fruitful varieties or hybrids, summarize the results of the last gardening season.

The epithet "asparagus" is widely used to characterize some vegetables - asparagus beans, asparagus cowpea, asparagus peas, asparagus salad, asparagus chard, etc. But these are completely different things! However, stubbornness "wins." Everything that is cooked in the kitchen like asparagus and has a similar taste is called "asparagus" in the world.

Corn beans are native to the Asian continent (in particular, from India, China, Pakistan), and beans are from Central America (although not all types).

Vigna - perfectly withstands drought and heat, due to which it gives birth well in the steppe, and beans in the steppe form extremely unstable yields.

Vigna is more heat demanding than common beans.

The best beans for flaskole are Bowie, Croquet and Pike. These varieties are high yielding and versatile.

In cowpea, asparagus or vegetable, unripe thin beans are used for food when they do not exceed 30-40 cm. They are cooked similar to asparagus beans. Later, they swell and become inedible.

The cowpea is more drought tolerant than regular grain beans. It forms beans with seeds well in hot and dry conditions. Delicious sweet pies are made with cowpea boiled and mashed in mashed potatoes.

It is important not to rush to sowing dates. This crop does not tolerate spring cold snaps, so it is better to sow at the end of May.

Tall varieties of asparagus cowpea require pegs, nets or trellises to be supported. The lower lateral shoots are pinned. The crop responds well to irrigation, and undersized grain varieties are highly drought tolerant and resistant to soil salinity.

The popular variety of vegetable (asparagus) beans Blauchild is curly, therefore it requires supports in the form of poles or a net. It is advisable to sow at several times from spring to early July.

Last season we were pleased with the harvest of such varieties as Fioletova Talisman, Fingourment, Dalinal, Rudy.