Organic Broad Bean: Aquadulce

Description

Organic Broad Bean, Aquadulce. Vicia faba.

Aquadulce is a popular traditional variety developed for its hardiness and high yield growing to about 90cms high.

How to grow:
Sow direct outside from October/November, this means they have a head start and will give you an early crop, or sow end February to end of March. Sow in a sheltered place. Mulch with well rotted manure/compost, feed well.
Pinch out the top growth after about 4 sets of flowers have grown, this allows the plant to concentrate on the beans below instead of leaves above. It can also help with black fly infestation.

Problem solving:
Stake taller plants. If they’re in a windy position give them some shelter.
Black fly like broad beans and can spread disease, so spray with a environmentally friendly solution (a weak solution of Ecover washing up liquid), or you can rub them off between your fingers. If you leave the black fly you could end up with a good ladybird population.

Favourite ways to eat them:
Delicious if you pick them young and eat them raw still in the pods like sugar snap peas. Use them in your favourite recipes. If you have a lot try broad bean humus, so good 🙂
Beans can be frozen for use later.

Cultural history:
An ancient crop, one of the oldest we cultivated. It’s exact origin is up for debate but it seems it was around the fertile crescent/north Egypt area. We’ve heard an interesting story, thank you Conor, that in Co Tyrone broad beans are particularly popular because a land owner gave out broad beans to his tenants during the famine.

Avg contents:  35 seeds.