Dear Art Lover,
I got to help my landlord and his brother
pick the beans this year! These are the famous Sorana beans (fagioli di Sorana), a white bean widely
known in Italy, maybe beyond. I saw them
in the grocery store in Firenze recently.
The price: 28.29 euro per
kilo!
Normally the beans are planted around the end of May-beginning of
June. This year, we had a lot of
rain. That is no good since the seeds
would rot if planted in soggy soils. We
had to wait for about two weeks. Maurizio
even joked that if we were lucky, we might have beans for Christmas! I remember well that time. One afternoon I took a break from painting to
sit around with the guys after they cut back all of the weeds in the terraced campo around my home. We sat on the hill just below my house and
watched across the valley as a distant neighbor plowed his field and planted
the seeds. Our discussion was concern
that he was still too early. But he gets
more afternoon sun than we do, and now I can see that whatever he did worked
well enough.
 |
| Valleriana, Tuscany, Italy: the beans of Sorana; fagioli di Sorana |
Some of the farmers used nets. They roll
them up after each harvest, cleaning off extra plant material and often leave
them on a vertical post at each end of the former bean row. Others, such as my friends here, use bamboo
cane and create teepee shapes. They are
secured by a plastic line so they remain upright despite any winds. Both systems work, but the nets are quite
expensive, I have heard. Beans just need
to go vertical, as Jack taught most of us non-farmers.
The bean plant is a lovely shade of green,
but as the beans mature, the plant starts to yellow and die. It is quite easy to learn to know which ones
to pick and which to leave on the stalk a bit longer. The larger beans that are found lower to the
ground are often picked to store as seed for next year’s lot. My Italian landlord told me that tradition is
to choose those lower to the ground because if the bean comes from too high up
the stalk, the growth from that bean will only produce beans from that higher
point and upwards, resulting in fewer beans.
But, he also said that he has no idea if there is any basis of fact in
this.
My landlord does not grow food to sell so
much and his beans are not regulated with the organization of Sorana
beans. However, another neighbor’s beans
that ARE part of the organic, regulated trade told me that they also take the
seeds from lower down to plant next year, but also harvest those sooner, in the
case of rain… which we are experiencing now.
Apparently, beans near or in the ground at any stage of life do not like
soggy soils!
We mainly picked the beans that are in the
fairly dry and pale yellow pods. Leave
the green ones to mature. There are some
that are a deeper yellow (having emerged from or passed the green stage) in
which the pod is still soft to the touch, as one can feel the beans inside are,
too. We picked some of those, but
separated them. Those go straight into
the fridge or freezer for direct cooking and eating soon.
The brothers laid out onto the patio some netting with only very small holes in it. They then dumped the baskets of the collected bean pods on top and spread them out. Before they ran off to lunch, they both told me to let the beans dry in the sun a bit and then come out and dance upon them, setting the beans inside free.
Seriously?
I had heard of grape stomping, but never bean dancing! I was delighted. In the early afternoon, I was enchanted to
HEAR the beans popping out of the pods!
If you have ever listed to the cereal Rice Krispies when someone adds
milk to it (that was never me, I never liked milk, but my brothers do), it is a
similar sound… a soft sort of music in and of itself. However, I had brought my little radio
(thanks, Rusudana!) and an umbrella (I am not partial to direct sunshine) and
started dancing! What fun.
The beans are heavier than the dying pods
and the sun aids a lot on the harvest. I
had taken a break and sat at one end of the bean pile to start picking apart
any pods not fully opened, when Paolo and two of his fellow ambulance
volunteers arrived. They knew that it
was going to rain soon enough and lifted the net, carrying the beans into the
house and left them there overnight.
Actually, they left them for the next round of bean-picking. Sadly, I had to go to Firenze and then
Cortona to meet up with a visiting cousin and I missed the rest.
I had assumed that all of the work with
these special beans was done by hand.
But there is a machine that helps separate the pods from any stubborn
beans. It simply uses a small blast of
air to separate the pods, a brilliant solution without being overkill! I had hoped to see this machine, but will
have to wait for another opportunity.
The beans will be hand-sorted and bagged
for sale. One of the perks of living
here is that ALL of the neighbors help out with the organic and bio-controlled
labels for food here. No one uses harsh
chemicals in their gardens, even those who do not sell their food.
I must say that the subtle sunset before
the rain hit was lovely. The storm that
night did not last long, but we have had rain for the last three or four
days. There are still lots of beans on
the stalks that are still green, so the rain gave us a pause to relax (and in
my case, paint!). And no doubt the olive
trees have been thirsty this summer.
Their harvest comes in November.
I hope that my knee has healed by then!
[I recently bought a bike for one of my studio rooms and have started a
different therapy.]
Now, off to my studio! Thank you for your interest in Tuscany,
organic healthy foods, and art!
Peace,
Kelly
