I have white bleeding heart seed from your want list and would like to trade for your dianthus. Doreen.

>and I think you'll see that they are known almost everywhere, not just here in the NE. I didn't mean to imply otherwise, Carolyn. If I did, I apologize. What I meant, merely, was that historically Soldier and, to a lesser extent, Yellow Eye are associated more with New England. Indeed, in old-time New England recipes for baked beans, when they said "bean" they meant either Soldier or Cranberry more times than not. Jacobs Cattle was another popular choice when a meatier bean was preferred. Yellow Eye was _the_ bean of choice in Maine. There are, too, numerous variations on the themes. As noted, there is a Southern Soldier that has black markings instead of red. Recently I came into a varient that has dark mahogany markings; so deep I thought it was black (but I also have a red/green deficiency) until corrected by Friend Wife and others. This mahogany Soldier comes from Western Kentucky where, at one time, it was commercially available simply as Soldier. There is a Vermont Yellow Eye, which may or may not be the same bean as the Maine Yellow Eye. And a plain old Yellow Eye which, again, may or may not be the same bean. There is also a Yellow Eye from the southwest, which is a different bean altogether. In the recipe section of his book, John Withee has about a dozen recipes for baked beans. Most of them merely specify "dry beans," without a varietal preference. But it's interesting that under "John Withee's Baked Beans" he specifies Jacob's Cattle (another bean associted with New England), Yellow Eye, or Soldier beans. And in "Grandma's Home Baked Beans" he specifies Soldier. While baked beans tend to be associated with the north, in the south dry beans were primarily used to make soup and to be barbequed. Unfortunately, among old timers (particularly in the mountains), any smallish, light colored dry beans were collectively known simply as "soup beans." Sometimes there was a variety grown just for that purpose. But just as often they merely let their main crop dry and used that as a soup bean. So, whereas we can easily identify the preferred choices for baked beans (even within subregions), it is much more difficult to do that with soup beans.

I guess I'm lucky I only have to wear it at night and when I'm doing something outside, driving, things that might cause me to bump or injure it further. Katie, I'm in zone 5a and the Mayacobas grow here, those were grown about 30 miles from my house, so you might, maybe, be able to grow them. They are actually one of my favorite beans, they cook up with a lovely creamy texture. Enjoy the beans, no matter whether you can grow them or not. You know you have a source. (grin) I stopped at Horrock's today and they have green and yellow peas, cranberry beans, a 15 bean medley, the yellow eye, the Maycoba, cannellini, Great Northern, kidney, navy, more kinds of beans than I can even remember, and all from the same farm in Howard City, Michigan. Michigan grows a LOT of beans which are then marketed dried, I never thought we'd have that kind of climate but I guess we do. Annie

Black eyed peas are delicious, either fresh or dried. A traditional New Year's dish in some parts of the South is "Hoppin John", which is black eyed peas cooked with rice, onion, seasonings, some sort of pork, and other goodies. Like all traditional recipes, every family has its variations on the basic theme. You can do a Google search and end up with dozens of recipes. It's a great way to cook black eyed peas. But if I'm in the mood for black eyed peas but feeling lazy, I reach for a can of Trappey's Black Eyed Peas with Jalapeno peppers. Mighty good stuff. (Trappey's is a company based in South Louisiana; their canned goods are excellent, but may be hard to find in some parts of the country.) Here is a link that might be useful: Hoppin John