[savbo]

Just to confuse things further, aren't the white beans that we eat as French beans called haricot...the baked bean bean? I harvested laods last year and made nice stews with them

sav

[Casey76]

Yes, the white beans used in baked beans are haricot beans (though just to be confusing, other manufacturers may use canellini beans instead of haricots, especially in foreign made brands).

In France, French beans are "haricot vert"  which is what I grew up calling "green beans" when they are eaten whole, with pod.  The bean themselves is the "haricot"

Obviously French beans can be dwarf (bush) types or climbing, and they can also be "mangetout" (eat all, pods etc) or écosser (shelling beans, where you grow them for the bean); then we have féves which are broad beans

[ConfusedGardener]

Thanks for all the help unraveling this confusing subject everyone, and for the links.

[BussinSpain]

Hello ConfusedGardener:)  I think you might find that commercially dried and prepared kidney beans may have been "nuked" or treated in some way to help with the shelf life.  So this procedure may affect the germination.

[ConfusedGardener]

Thanks for the advice BussinSpain, but I just ordered from the link mum suggested so there shouldn't be a problem

[BussinSpain]

Thanks for the advice BussinSpain, but I just ordered from the link mum suggested so there shouldn't be a problem

  Good luck and let us know how you get on with them please:)

[ConfusedGardener]

Good luck and let us know how you get on with them please:)

Will do

Before I completely forget, I have another bean related question that I've been meaning to ask - My mother always used to talk about how great the flavor of the beans was that one of my aunts used to grow in Germany many years back, and I'd like to try and find the same variety again if it's still about. It was in the 70's and I was still a kid. All I remember was that they were white beans (the pods) - I can't remember if they were were a dwarf variety, but I suspect they may have been.

I took a chance and bought some "Anellino giallo" to try which is a white Italian heirloom climbing bean also known as the "Golden Shrimp" bean, but perhaps someone here knows of another variety that might be worth looking into if that is not the one?