I used to pass snake beans by in the green grocer, mainly because they weren’t a familiar vegetable, but also because I didn’t imagine that the long floppy ropes of bean could be as tasty as the standard round and flat green beans. I was wrong, and they are a great crop for humid summers.
Snake beans in the Subtropics
Now that I am gardening in the subtropics I have realised the value of snake beans as a crop. They are a vigorous climber that does well in warm wet weather when production of standard green beans falls away. They are very productive, and go by a range of names, including the descriptive ‘yard long beans’ and ‘asparagus bean’. The botanical name is Vigna unguiculata, which includes cultivars grown just for the seed beans.
My first crop over the chicken coop fence last year suffered from being too close to trees, with the combination of dry soil and shade limiting their production, but this year they are growing beautifully over an old tomato trellis. The challenge tends to be finding the pairs of beans among the stems and foliage, but the more determined you are the more likely you are to come away with a good bundle of beans. Even the pods you miss are not a problem, as they mature to ‘black beans’ (as used in chilli and stews, but different to the fermented asian ‘black beans’) as the pods turn papery, which are useful for both chicken and human food.
Another cultivar of Vigna unguiculata which grows equally well here is the black eyed pea. It has shorter pods which we have not tried as green beans, but which quickly mature to hold the black eyed peas, also known as cow peas. The dried beans are not large, which might be why they are called ‘peas’ in some places. I was familiar with these as a dried bean. They happen to go well with same-season crops like okra, tomato and squash. If it were important to stockpile a dried bean crop here, black eyed peas might be the go.
Of course I was wrong to be suspicious of the eating quality of snake beans. They are crisp, tender and delicious steamed, and also perfect for including in mixed dishes like stir fries or paella. I think the alternative name ‘asparagus bean’ is a good way of thinking of them, although they don’t resemble asparagus in flavour at all.
The main limitation with production this year has been a heavy infestation of aphids on an end plant of the trellis. These are being farmed by ants which nest in the bamboo trellis, so the problem probably would be fixed using new unsplit bamboo.