Angel Climbing French Bean

It gets its name from the pattern around the hilum of the seeds, which resembles an angel with wings spread. The pattern is so intricate you’d be forgiven for thinking each bean had been hand-painted.

Its interest doesn’t stop at its appearance, however. Our donor was given seeds of this variety as a gift from a friend in Germany, where it is also known as the Monstrance Bean, as the markings also bear some similarity to the shape of the sacred vessels used by the Roman Catholic church.

The legend suggests that, during World War One, a French pastor planted beans above his buried artefacts to prevent their discovery. The beans produced by these plants bore the marks we now see.

We took Angel climbing French bean into our collection in 2014 and it’s been a firm favourite ever since. The plants produce beautiful orange-red flowers followed by flat, green pods packed with the pretty beans, which are perfect for use dried.

Few varieties can compete when it comes to appearance and backstory. Podding these beans instantly evokes the story of the French pastor and reminds us of the freedoms we enjoy today.

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