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Longest Spaghetti Bean-world record set by
Toni Velardo
WORTHING, UK -- Toni Velardo, 62, of Guildford
Road, Worthing, has grown a 2.75ft-long bean, setting the
world record for the Longest Spaghetti Bean.
Photo: Toni Velardo and his wife
Lucia in their greenhouse with the bean that has been growing
at a rate of two inches a day / The Argus photo (enlarge
photo)
Toni about his Spaghetti Bean: “They’re
fantastic for eating. They’ve got no strings and they’re soft.
You don't need to cut off the ends like English runner beans.”
The builder and decorator bought the unusual
spaghetti bean seeds in their native Italy where they are
a common addition to hanging baskets and salads.
The beans thrived in his greenhouse, growing
at an incredible two inches a day.
He said: “We first tried them about five years
ago in the allotment but they kept growing along the ground
instead of up. “I had a feeling they needed a hotter environment,
so I planted about half a dozen seeds in the greenhouse. Normally
my wife cuts them before they get too big. I think this one
was hiding behind the leaves so it got the chance to grow
longer.”
The current record for a green bean is 48in or
4ft. The spaghetti strain has been accepted as a different
species.
Barry Newman, chairman of the the National Vegetable
Society in the South, said: “There are about 20 varieties
of bean. The so-called ‘green bean’ is an Americanism which
probably refers to the flat French bean. The spaghetti bean
is something quite different, it has a long bean with a rounded
pencil pod. “Even the spaghetti bean pods do not normally
grow longer than 12in or 13in so I wish Toni the best of luck.”
Toni Velardo grows a wide variety
of organic fruit and vegetables including peaches, lemons,
chilli peppers and four varieties of tomato. He said: “We
have to buy things from the supermarket occasionally but we
try to grow everything.” He puts his bean’s prodigious growth
down to warmth and a lot of luck. He said: “There’s no secrets
and anybody can grow them.”
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
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