Edible Mexican Garden. Rosalind Creasy
they can reach 7 or 8 feet in height.
How to grow: Amaranth, a tropical annual, glories in warm weather. Start seedlings after all danger of frost is past. Plant seeds ⅛ inch deep, 4 inches apart, in full sun and rich, well-drained soil. Plant the large grain amaranths in blocks with the rows 1 foot apart to prevent lodging (falling over); thin the plants to 1 foot apart. (If the plants start to lodge, place stakes and strings around the planting.) Plant the leaf types 6 inches apart and thin seedlings to 1 foot apart. Keep amaranths fairly moist. Generally, all amaranths grow with great enthusiasm. Cucumber beetles are occasionally a problem.
To harvest for greens, select the young, tender leaves and shoots. In the north, harvest the grains after the first frost; in mild-winter areas, wait until heads begin to drop their seed. Cut the tops and lay them on a tarp to dry for about a week; protect against rain and heavy dew. To thresh large amounts of grain, lay the dry heads on a sheet or tarp, cover them with another sheet, and dance on the top layer to knock the shiny seeds free. For small amounts, you can rub the seed heads on a screen or lightly beat them in a bag to remove the seed. Use an electric fan to separate the seeds from the lighter chaff as you pour them into a bowl. Wear gloves, as the flower heads can be rough and to prevent the red varieties from staining your hands.
Burgundy grain amaranth ‘Hopi Red Dye'
Seed saving: Amaranths are primarily wind pollinated and readily cross-pollinate. To prevent cross-pollination, put cloth bags over the flower heads. Tape or tie the bags closed around the stalk. As the plants bear both male and female flowers, they self-pollinate with the bags in place. When the dried heads are ripe, cut them off and thresh as above.
Varieties
The leaves and seeds of all varieties can be eaten, but the leaf types have the tastiest leaves and the grain types more seeds. Native Seeds/SEARCH carries several varieties from Mexico; Abundant Life Seed Foundation and Bountiful Gardens carry many amaranths.
Grain Amaranths
‘Alegria’: grown in Mexico for its blond seed, which is used for the traditional confection called alegria
‘Golden Giant’: 110 days; 6 feet tall; golden flower heads; grown for its white grain and edible young leaves; high yielding
‘Hopi Red Dye’ (‘Komo’): 120 days; to 6 feet tall; reddish purple leaves, black seeds
‘K432’ (‘Plainsman’): 95 days; high-yielding variety from Rodale Research; light pink seed heads; good quality grain; carried by Johnny’s Seeds and Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
‘Mayo’: 90 days; red-flowered, black-seeded variety from Sonora; grain used for pinole and atole and young leaves for quelites (greens); available from Bountiful Gardens
Leaf Amaranths
‘Merah’: 80 days; crinkled green and red leaves
How to prepare: Select young, tender leaves and shoots to use as you would spinach. Amaranth leaves are often served in a manner similar to other greens in Mexico (quelites)— namely, cook briefly in a large saucepan in the water used to wash them, or boil or steam them. Slice the cooked greens. Briefly sauté onions, chiles, and garlic in a little oil; add the amaranth and heat. Serve as a side dish or tuck in a tortilla with a little cheese. Add the mild-tasting leaves to soups and stews at the end of the cooking time.
The flavor of amaranth grain is quite mild and nutty, and it’s high in protein. Amaranth flour contains no gluten, so it must be combined with wheat flour to make raised breads. The seed can be popped like popcorn; stir ½ cup of seeds in a hot, dry frying pan until popped (about 30 seconds). Mix with honey to create alegria, a traditional confection from central Mexico. The seeds can be ground and added to moles and breads.
BEANS, SNAP, SHELLING, AND DRY
(FRIJOLES)
Phaseolus spp.
FAVA BEANS (HABAS, BROAD BEANS)
Vicia faba
RUNNER BEANS
P. coccineus
TEPARY BEANS
P. acutifolius
MOST OF THE WORLD’S BEANS are native to Mexico and are a staple food there. Fresh beans, particularly fava beans, during Lent, are served in a number of dishes, but cooked dry beans are the most common form.
Runner beans grow on large vines covered with spikes of scarlet red flowers. These flowers are followed by long string beans that are eaten fresh, or, later in the growing season, by the large shelled beans.
Tepary beans are an ancient bean type cultivated for centuries by the Papago Indians and other desert dwellers. Teparies are extremely heat, drought, and alkaline-soil tolerant. They are also very nutritious.
How to grow: The majority of cultivated beans are annuals that must be planted after all danger of frost is past.
Standard Snap, Shelling, and Dry Beans
Most beans have similar needs—namely, full sun and a good, loose garden loam with plenty of added humus. Sow seeds of bush beans 1 inch deep in rows 18 inches apart; thin to 6 inches. Pole beans need a strong trellis to climb on. Plant the seeds 1 inch deep; thin to 8 inches apart. If the plants look pale at midseason, fertilize with fish emulsion. Beans are best watered deeply and infrequently. They have their share of pests, including bean beetles, beanloopers, whiteflies, aphids, mites, and cucumber beetles. Anthracnose and leaf spots diseases are most prevalent in humid climates.
Harvest snap beans when the seeds inside are still very small and the pods are tender. For a continual crop, make sure to keep all beans harvested. Alternately, let the dry-bean varieties mature for a harvest of dry beans. See Harvesting Dry Beans, on page 25, for complete instructions.
Fava Beans
Fava beans are in another genus and grow in a different manner, as they prefer cool conditions and can tolerate light frosts. In cold-winter areas, plant fava beans when you plant peas. In areas where winters don’t dip into the teens, plant favas in the fall. They need about 90 days of cool weather to produce well. To plant, prepare the soil and plant seeds 2 inches deep and about 3 inches apart. The plants grow quickly to 5 feet in height. Support the tall plants with stakes and strings surrounding the outsides of the beds. Black aphids sometimes infest fava beans; control them with sprays of water or a commercial soap spray; slugs can destroy seedling beds.
Fava beans
‘Windsor’ fava beans
For young, tender fava beans that do not need the skins removed, harvest when they first start to fill out the pods. Alternately, let the fava beans mature and use them for fresh shelling beans or let them dry in the pod for dry beans.
Runner Beans
Runner beans produce best in cool-summer areas. Grow them in good soil and in full sun. Plant the seeds in the ground 1 inch deep; thin to 6 inches apart. Keep the plants fairly moist and protect the seedlings from slugs, snails, and bean beetles. The plants flower within a few months and beans are produced if the weather stays cool or turns cool in early fall.
Harvest young runner bean pods for snap beans (the pods are larger than standard snap beans) or let the pods fill out and harvest for fresh shelling beans or for dried beans after the pods dry.
Tepary Beans
Tepary beans are fast-growing dry beans. Sow seeds in summer after the soil has warmed. Plant in full sun, ½ inch deep and 4 inches apart. Teparies are tolerant of heat and drought. Give them an initial deep watering at planting time (or plant just before a good summer rain) and