Saturday, June 13, 2009

Happy Birthday Baby Bean Trees!

A year ago the first little bean tree sprout (Mescal Bean-Sophora secundiflora) poked up from the ground, and my dream of having these trees in my yard became a reality. These little trees are notoriously slow growers, but they also transplant very poorly, so growing them from seed seemed the way to go. Out of the 11 original beans I planted around the yard, 9 are still alive and growing, although a few of them may eventually get pulled out. As you can see from their pictures, they vary widely in size, with some looking really sad. The two bigger ones, are on the North side of the house, and get a fair amount of morning shade. The tiny ones are in the big area on the West side- and they get so much sun. I have rocks that give them a little shade, but some just are not doing well at all. Anyway it has been a fun year of watching them and blogging about them and dreaming about the grape candy scented blooms of the future.



















It is perfect seed sprouting time for these trees- when the seeds have just a touch of red on them, they will easily sprout. If you have one near you give it a try....the reward 10 or so years from now when it blooms will be sweet. :)

6 comments:

Julie said...

They look like survivors! So little and cute, still. You sure have an optimistic view on the future of these cute trees! Good luck with their continued success!

The PURE Gardener, Inc. said...

Congrats on your babys! They look great!

Claude said...

Those little trees are just as cute as a bug in a rug... They look like they're doing fine.

A little patience, and you'll have grape Kool aid scent wafting through your yard...

soulbrush said...

how arid. isn't mother nature fantastic. we can learn a helleva lot from her! at all times.

Diane AZ said...

Your baby been trees are looking great. You have much patience to nurture such slow growing plants.

NCSU guy said...

Maybe the use of a bit of mulch(gravel or wood) might help, keep the soil cool and give some nutrients back to the plant. Good luck with the little ones!