Turkey Craw Bean
Item Details
Collected in regions of Virginia, North Carolina, and TenneSeed Savers Exchangee, this variety’s original seed is reported to have been found in a wild turkey’s craw. As they mature, the stringless 6" pods enclose attractive brown seeds with tan flecks and brown eye rings. Used as a snap bean or a dry bean; excellent canned or frozen. From the Wanigan Associates Collection organized by the late John Withee.
- 80-100 days
- ±1,100 seeds/lb
- Conventional
- Pole bean
- Snap or dry bean
- Stringless pods
- Brown beans with tan flecks
This variety works for:
- Fresh eating
- Steaming
- Roasting
- Baking
- Soups
- Canning
- Freezing
When preparing your snap beans, clean off the ends and wash before lightly braising them with garlic and tossing with bacon.
When dry, these beans liked to be cooked long and slow at low heat to keep their texture and flavor at its peak. Try them in your favorite baked beans recipe!
Growing Instructions
Instructions - Sow seeds outdoors after danger of frost has passed and soil and air temperatures have warmed. Harvest snap beans frequently for increased yields. Leave some pods on the vine and harvest when completely mature for dry beans.
- Direct Seed: 2" Apart
- Seed Depth: 1"
- Support: Trellis, tepee, or fencing
- Light: Full Sun
Ratings & Reviews
6 reviews
Turkey Craw beans
by gillbert
New to the garden this year. Mid July and these are crawling up every where...so far so good.
Classic country pole green bean
by Robert
Turkey Craw is an old time vigorous pole green bean. Good snap green and the beans fill out inside the pods if you let them, but they will get a string unless you pick them young and flat. Not hard to pull the strings when you remove the ends of the pods. Or you can leave them on the vine for dry beans.I found them to produce quicker than the 80 days stated here. Old heirloom beans like this are considered to be more flavorful than bush beans.
Good sturdy bean
by Mark in Palo Alto
Grew these for the first time this year. Had a little trouble getting them going, but once established, these turned into a great pole bean. Grown as snap bean, these are best picked when they are 3 - 3 1/2 inches long. It is sturdy bean, short but thick for its size. I will definitely be growing them again next season. Good bean, good flavor, good production.
delicious and prolific
by Constance
I love these! For a while I thought they weren't going to produce at all - it took them 2+ months to produce a flower. But once they got going, they didn't stop. Still flowering in October!
Heavy yield for dry beans
by Jason, in Chelsea, Michigan
Of the various dry beans that I grow, Turkey Craw has consistently been my highest yield per weight of dry beans. Moreover, I rarely ever have trouble with mold setting in even when this variety is left on the trellis too long.
High Quality Seeds
by Las Cruces Public Libraries
We order these and give them away in our community seed garden and they are always a hit! One of our staff members planted some to grow in the children's display and they are flourishing in the middle of our very poorly lit library. These are some very high quality seeds.