My daughter bought a novelty plant in the spring, a bean in a can, when it sprouted it had a fortune on the 1st leaves. Her's said "Money, Money, Money". The bean was large and reddish brown, much like a large kidney bean, which I thought it was. The vine is now as tall as our 2 story house, growing up in trees, across fences, its crazy. It has medium sized purple flowers that look like a giant snap dragon or small orchid and is producing thick beans that are approx 12 inches in length that turn brown and have 8 or 10 red beans inside.
I have read doing an internet search, that the way to laser the "fortunes" on these 'fortune telling beans' were developed in Japan, and they were first marketed there, but I can't find any discription of the plant itself.
Before I pass these seeds on to friends and family, please help me find out what it is.
2006-07-28 14:26:51 · 6 answers · asked by sxseaustin1 2 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
It's most definitely NOT kudzu. I grew up around kudzu, and it is awful, but definitely not anything like a bean.
Here is the definitive answer:
You have a sword bean plant.
Detailed information on Sword Bean (Canavalia gladiata)
One vendor has this plant for sale.
Family: Papilionaceae (puh-pil-ee-uh-NAY-see-ee) (Info)
Genus: Canavalia (kan-uh-VAY-lee-uh) (Info)
Species: gladiata (glad-ee-AY-tuh) (Info)
Category:
Annuals
Vegetables
Groundcovers
Vines and Climbers
Height:
6-8 ft. (1.8-2.4 m)
20-30 ft. (6-9 m)
Spacing:
Unknown - Tell us
Hardiness:
USDA Zone 8b: to -9.4° C (15° F)
USDA Zone 9a: to -6.6° C (20° F)
USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8° C (25° F)
USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1°C (30° F)
USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7° C (35° F)
USDA Zone 11: above 4.5° C (40° F)
Sun Exposure:
Full Sun
Sun to Partial Shade
Danger:
Parts of plant are poisonous if ingested
Bloom Color:
Rose/Mauve
Violet/Lavender
Purple
Bloom Time:
Late Spring/Early Summer
Mid Summer
Blooms repeatedly
Foliage:
Herbaceous
Smooth-Textured
Other details:
Drought-tolerant; suitable for xeriscaping
Average Water Needs; Water regularly; do not overwater
Soil pH requirements:
5.6 to 6.0 (acidic)
6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic)
6.6 to 7.5 (neutral)
7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline)
Propagation Methods:
From seed; sow indoors before last frost
From seed; direct sow after last frost
From seed; germinate in a damp paper towel
Seed Collecting:
Allow pods to dry on plant; break open to collect seeds
Noun 1. sword bean - twining tropical Old World plant bearing long pods usually with red or brown beans; long cultivated in Orient for food
Canavalia gladiata
Canavalia, genus Canavalia - herbs or woody vines of mainly American tropics and subtropics
vine - weak-stemmed plant that derives support from climbing, twining, or creeping along a surface
Canavalia gladiata Elevation: up to 1,500m
Sword Bean MS, LL, RF, H
Uncooked seed is toxic at any stage, BUT young tender immature pods are edible after being boiled and water poured off. Do not eat in large quantities and do not eat mature seeds, even after boiling! Drought-tolerant, green manure; seeds germinate readily. Optimum growth occurs in full sunlight but sword beans are tolerant of some shade. Preferred environmental conditions are found in the humid lowland tropics but these beans may be grown with success in tropical elevations to 1,000 m (3,000 ft). Sword Bean thrives in tropical climates exhibiting moderately high temperature (15-30°C/59-86°F) environments. Sword Bean is tolerant of a wide range of rainfall conditions (from 700-4,200 mm or approximately 27-165 in). Sword Bean is well adapted to growth and survival in low-quality soils.
Soil pH: 4.3-7.5.
2006-07-28 15:05:56 · answer #1 · answered by Jeremiah 3 · 3⤊ 0⤋
My best guess is that these are Kudzu vines--a very invasive pest originally from Japan. I do not recommend planting or growing these as they are so invasive.
Please see the below link for more information:
http://www.invasive.org/eastern/srs/K.html
2006-07-28 21:51:56 · answer #2 · answered by geisha girl 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cant the Fortune Cookie tell you? lol
2006-07-28 22:05:33 · answer #3 · answered by pondering 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
try and join this yahoo group gardenmessenger they are very good and will answer all gardening questions - they also have a very good web-site http://www.gardenmessenger.net/
2006-07-28 21:43:18 · answer #4 · answered by gardenmessenger 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think what you got is this one:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4209571.stm
2006-07-28 21:47:49 · answer #5 · answered by Marianna 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I never heard of it,dig it up
2006-07-29 07:27:16 · answer #6 · answered by txcatwoman 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋