JoAnne's Archive

Have you ever BEAN to the Canning Plant?
By JoAnne Leone

The Wednesday Farmers Market was hopping this week. Located in the parking lot of the Civic Center on the corner of Wellborn and School Rd. , folks are starting to take advantage of this mid-week opportunity to get their fresh produce. If you don't want to rise early on a Saturday or you want to get your produce fresh out of the fields' just hours before you put it up, then Wednesday is your best opportunity.

With the Canning Plant now open, what's picked Tuesday night is available to you on Wednesday. Thursday you can hit the Cannery and capture its goodness in your jar in less than 48 hours. If you have never taken advantage of the Canning Plant, this Saturday there will be tours of the plant as part of the Green Bean Festival. Please come out and see all that's available to you this wonderful facility.

And speaking of the Green Bean Festival, this is a reminder that this Saturday's Farmers Market will be in the parking lot of the OLD Historic Courthouse, as we take our place at the Square for an all-day Farmers Market. We look forward to being part of this wonderful new Festival in Blairsville.

The Green Bean Festival celebrates the nutrient rich heritage between green beans and the people of North Georgia . The Festival Committee, (kudos, folks – you've been working so hard!) hopes to increase tourism in Downtown Blairsville and surrounding areas, to pass on the vast knowledge of our farmers to the next generation, to establish a larger market for locally grown varieties, to promote sustainable “green” living, and most importantly -to create a fun, family-orientated event! We sure hope you'll come out Friday night and Saturday to enjoy all the festivities.

Now, did you know……?

•Green Beans grew wild in Central and South America and have been used by people in these areas since 5000-6000 BC.

•From origins in Peru and Central America, beans were spread throughout the Americas by Native people.

•Green beans, while quite low in calories (less than 45 calories in a whole cup), are loaded with nutrients. Green beans are an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin C, manganese, vitamin A, dietary fiber, potassium, folate, and iron.

•Green beans are in the same family as dry beans, such as pinto beans, black beans and kidney beans. Green beans are actually the pods and seeds of immature dry beans. Varieties called "green" beans are bred to have a juicier, tender pod than the types used for dry beans.

•"Green" beans can actually be green, yellow, purple, or speckled in these colors.

•Green beans are nitrogen fixers. They have the ability to draw nitrogen from the air and return it to the soil. Because of this, farmers often plant beans and other related plants in the legume family in their crop rotations to replenish the soil.