Beans in the backyard 2012, Harvest!

September 30

Although the top photo was taken on Sunday morning, the field was harvested two days earlier, on September 28.  The bottom picture shows a few pods that escaped the combine with one pod opened so you can see the beans.  When I spoke to Farmer Wagenbach the day before harvest, he was optimistic that the harvest could be good.  Even though we've had our worst drought in over 70 years and plenty of heat, God has blessed this field.

Beans in the backyard 2012, weeks 19, 20, & 21

September 10

Thanks to my trusty assistant, Emil, we have photos to document the bean development in my absence.  These pictures for September 10 show quite a few more yellow leaves than our last photos of the field, but the fact that there were so many leaves visible means harvest is still weeks away.  Another sign of development was the coloring of the pods that were mostly brown instead of mostly green as they've been until these photos were taken.

September 18

Many more leaves had fallen by the time this photo was taken on September 18, but there was still enough green vegetation in the field to indicate that harvest was not imminent.  One can see a distinctive trait of mature beans in this photo: the nearly straight stalks with clearly visible pods, and a noticeable absence of leaves.  This phase in bean development always amazes me, that what looked like a bushy plant a few weeks ago can look like such a straight stick at this phase.

September 23

The beans appear nearly ready for harvest in these photos from September 23.  I believe any green leaves in these photos actually belong to weeds in the field, and not bean stalks.  The stick-like appearance of the stalks is evident again in this photo, and the stalks have clearly reached the R8, full maturity stage.

Even though we've had a pretty severe drought this summer, Farmer Wagenbach appears to have been blessed with beans that have a fair number of pods and seeds.  About the only thing that would reduce the harvest at this point would be storm damage that might make harvest difficult.

Beans in the backyard 2012, weeks 16 & 17

August 19

You may have noticed the grass slowly going dormant in the wide angle pictures over the last several weeks, although you should notice a gradual regrowth in the image above.  We were blessed with almost 3 inches of rain in two separate showers the week before August 19, so plenty of plants in the area are showing a revival as a result.  The majority of the rain came with stiff winds which caused many of the bean plants to lean more than they had before.  Otherwise, the development of the plants continues with the assistance of the rain.  Some of the plants in the field are beginning to show yellow leaves, but they are a distinct minority right now. This period of development appears to be about R5.5 or R6.

This closeup view shows large pods rapidly filling at the upper nodes.

August 26

The pictures taken this day could be the most lovely ones of the summer since it was raining while I was photographing.  Notice again how much greener the grass is after the 3 inches of rain the week before.  Although no rain fell between August 19 and 26, an all-day rain on the 26th totaled 3.2 inches in one day.  I believe the beans should be benefiting from the rain even in this later stage of development.  Yellow leaves are visible  in the photos today, although they are still in the minority across the field.  Because of the rain, I didn't examine the plants too closely so I'm not sure if any of the early trifoliolate leaves have fallen.  The reading I've done leads me to believe the development stage is probably R6 right now.

These plants still have a long way to go before harvest, but their progress is persistent and encouraging.

Beans in the backyard 2012, week 15

 August 12

The stalks appear to have topped out at 45 inches, or the same height they were last week.  No new trifoliolates this week either, which may be normal if the plant is directly most of its nutrients into adding mass to the seeds.  The seed development in the pods at the upper nodes is coming along nicely so I think we can confidently say the plant is at V19 and R5 stages.

This shot gives you a better view of the nice pod and seed development all along the stalk.  Our only rain this week was a 0.15" shower on Wednesday, but we're still thankful for any little bit that falls this summer.  Rain and moderate temperatures will help add seed mass at this stage, so we'll continue to seek God's mercy on behalf of Farmer Wagenbach's beans.

Beans in the backyard 2012, week 14

August 5

After 14 weeks of growing since they broke through the soil, the bean stalks have reached 45 inches tall and continue to add branches and pods.  I counted 19 fully emerged trifoliolates this morning, and was pleased to see long pods on the nodes of even the most recently emerged branches.  This stage of development is obviously V19 and what I would call R5 for the seed development.

Our only rain this week came early this morning and totaled 0.15 inches.  Despite the drought we've been experiencing, I'm encouraged by the number of pods that have survived and continue to develop on these plants.  Nonetheless, we'll continue to pray for rain for Farmer Wagenbach's beans and the other crops in the area.

Beans in the backyard 2012, week 13

July 29

The bean stalks reached 42 inches tall this week, and I counted 17 fully emerged trifoliolates.  Large pods are seen at many of the nodes over the length of the stalk.

Although some of the pods have only two seeds, the seeds are continuing to grow.  We received 0.6" of rain this week split between two showers on the same day (thanks for your prayers) so the plants were able to supplement the moisture they're pulling from the ground.  As the seeds add mass during this stage, the vegetation will supply about half of the nutrients needed while the other half will come from the roots.  Please continue to pray for rain as this stage is crucial in determining the size of Farmer Wagenbach's harvest.  For those keeping score at home, I'm describing today's growth as V17 and early R5.

Beans in the backyard 2012, weeks 11 & 12

 June 15

On the 15th the stalks had grown to 35 inches and 13 fully emerged trifoliolates were visible.  I was impressed that the plants continue to grow and develop even though we've had very little rain for several weeks.

At this stage, pods of at least 3/16" are visible at the upper nodes and larger pods are forming at the lower nodes.  My amateur scoring is V13 and R3.  I'm told the plant is very vulnerable to temperature and moisture stress for the next few weeks.  Coincidentally, we are experiencing temperatures well above normal along with the lack of rain mentioned above.

June 22 

The stalks measured 39 inches tall this week and 15 fully emerged trifoliolates were visible.  If you look carefully, you can see pods that are about an inch long on the nodes that are about fourth from the top, so if we're not there already, I would say we're pretty close to the R4 stage.

Here's an image of the maturing pods on some of the middle nodes.  I don't know how this crop compares to a normal year, but I think it looks encouraging considering the heat and drought we're experiencing.  Now would be a good time to pray for rain for Farmer Wagenbach's beans and the other crops in the area.

Beans in the backyard 2012, week 10

July 8

Most of the plants measured 31 inches tall on July 8, and I counted 11 fully developed trifoliolates.  You can see beetle damage on some of the upper leaves, but healthy leaves continue to appear above them.  I think the beetle activity has slowed significantly over the past week, so this crop shouldn't suffer any more because of that pest.

The big new this week is the appearance of pods!  You can see some beginning to form at the juncture of the lateral branches in the middle of this image.  I apologize that the central stalk of the plant is not is focus.  Since we've had very hot weather and minimal rain, we'll watch these (and hopefully other) pods develop to try to determine whether these plants are suffering heat stress at this critical time in the formation of the crop.

Beans in the backyard 2012, week 9

July 1

Most of the plants measured 25 inches tall on this day, and I counted at least nine fully emerged trifoliolates with more developing.

In this photo we can see blooms developing on the upper nodes of the plant, and I observed blooms on all the other nodes as well as most (all?) of the branches.  My sources inform me that the plants should continue to gain height, foliage, blooms, and eventually pods.  We'll keep watching and strive to keep you informed of all the developments.

Beans in the backyard 2012, weeks 6, 7 & 8

 June 10

The plants I examined had attained five trifoliolates fully emerged by June 10.  If you look closely, you can see spots on the leaves from the herbicide that was applied a few days earlier.  Some of the other plants are showing more severe reactions to the herbicide, but obviously all the weeds hadn't died yet.

 June 17

Six trifoliolates had emerged by June 17, and more of the weeds had surrendered to the herbicide.

 June 24

These pictures look a little different because they were taken in the evening instead of the normal morning shots.  I counted eight fully emerged trifoliolates this week.  One can also observe damage to many of the upper leaves caused by Japanese Beetles, which were also present for this photo on some of the upper leaves.

Probably more significant this week is the presence of these blossoms.  By my amateur estimation, it appears that the plant is now in the first reproductive stage.  Things are really getting exciting now!

Beans in the backyard 2012, weeks 4 & 5

 May 27

 June 3

By the beginning of June we witnessed three fully developed trifoliolates and the fourth emerging.  My amateur analysis tells me this plant (and most of the field) is at the V3 stage, quickly approaching V4. There appears to be a small trifoliolate growing off the branch of one of the others, but we won't confuse that one with those on the main stem.  At this rate, I don't expect reproductive growth for another couple weeks, but we'll keep watching closely nonetheless.

Beans in the backyard 2012, weeks 2 & 3

May 13

Close-up view shows a good example of the unfolded unifoliolate leaves 20 days after planting.

May 20

This week one can see the first set of trifoliolate leaves fully unfolded and the second set unfolding nicely.  Bean development is turning out to be more interesting than I expected.  I'm not sure which is more exciting, corn development or bean development, but I suspect the bean excitement is only beginning!