Zolfino Bean

(Phaseolus vulgaris); Heirloom; a Slow Food Ark of Taste variety; Bush bean; Dry bean; Minimum 20 seeds In Italy, Zolfino beans are so prized they have their own association, Associazione del Fagiolo Zolfino del Pratomagno, which is credited for rescuing the variety from the brink of extinction. In 2000 they were boarded on Slow Food Italy's Ark of Taste. The small roundish beans named for their light yellow hue, akin to sulphur, are typically found growing along the terraced hillsides in the Pratomagno region of Tuscany, in the midst of lush olive groves. Fall harvested beans are allowed to sun-dry in the local farmyards before they are hand-cleaned and sorted, with only the best, flawless beans making it to market. Traditionally planted on “Giorno del Cento”, the hundredth day of the year, we wait until the soil temperature is consistently above 65° F before direct seeding (and that is a bit early!) Compact bushes are very productive yielding an abundant harvest of short pods contain