Hopi Black Dwarf French Bean

Phaseolus vulgaris

Story: Named after the Indigenous American Hopi people who originally stewarded it, this ancient bean has been used for food and dye for centuries. The dark black colour and nutty firm textured beans are excellent in chilli and Mexican style dishes. It is a compact French dwarf bean (30 – 50cm plants) producing lilac flowers and green pods which we found resistant to drought and very productive. 

Harvesting for eating: In the summer. Hopi black beans can be picked young and eaten as green beans but we find them an excellent drying bean

When to harvest seed: July - Oct. When beans are fully mature and pods begin to turn brown. In southern England, typically from July/later summer.

Need to isolate: No 

Saving Seed From dwarf French beans: Isolation: French beans are self pollinating and rarely cross pollinate though it is good practice to allow 3m between different varieties. Processing Seed: Allow beans to fully ripen on the plant, when they begin to turn brown and papery, pick whole pods and bring them inside to dry fully. Once completely dry, shell the beans from their papery pods. 

How to send seed back: Please label all seed with variety, type, date and your contact, if you didn't get a chance to fill out our online data collection form, you can also send us a few lines about how it grew for you/flavour etc. Please aim to send back around 1/3 cup of dried seed or more so that we can continue to share with network members. Send to: Omved Gardens, 1 Townsend Yard, N6 5JF.

Please remember, if you’re an individual grower you can order up to 3 packets of seeds. If you order more than this, you will receive just three packs to begin with. This is to ensure we get plenty of data in return and to keep our stocks sustainable for years to come.* 

*Community groups and Experienced Growers can order larger quantities, please email us if this is the case.

If an item is out of stock we will send a close alternative.