Brown Resilient
Crop: Bean (Phaseolus spp.)
Use/Type: Dry
Breeder: Carol Deppe Fertile Valley Seeds
OSSI Pledge Date: 8/3/2016
Release Date: January 2017
Bred for Organic Systems: Yes
Commercial Availability: Yes
Variety Type: Finished Variety
Description
Early productive dry bean with a rich meaty flavor. (Replaces OSSI-Pledged variety Beef-Bush Brown Resilient, which is discontinued.) I bred Brown Resilient from Gaucho, an Argentine heirloom, and Beefy Resilient Grex, a gene pool I developed from a cross of Gaucho and Black Mitla. Brown Resilient is genetically about ¾ Gaucho and ¼ Black Mitla. Brown Resilient is about one to two weeks later than Gaucho and early New England standards such as Jacobs Cattle and Soldier. In the maritime Northwest, Brown Resilient yields about as well as Jacobs Cattle or Soldier but is a full-flavored rather than a mild-flavored bean. So it serves well in dishes where the bean must stand alone and provide most or all the flavor such as in vegan dishes that will not also include meat or cheese. Also complements the flavors of beef, pork, tomatoes, and cheese. Not optimal in Boston Baked beans or in vegetable, chicken, or turkey soups, where it would overwhelm the other ingredients.
Capable of producing well in the maritime NW, where springs can be cold and nights drop down to the 50’s Fahrenheit through most of the summer. The variety is a mix of bushes and short-vine types. Vines on the short vine types don’t touch the ground, and plants can be grown as bushes. The seeds are about 80 – 90% brown, with the rest being gold or black. I initially started selecting a pure brown line under the name Beef-Bush Brown Resilient, but found out that the short-vined types yielded much better than the bushes in the same space and could be treated just like bushes. And the short-vine plants may be more resistant to drought. In addition, brown lines with a little yellow and black left in turned out to yield much higher than pure brown lines. So I dropped Beef-Bush Brown Resilient, and replaced it with the higher yielding Brown Resilient. If I were intending to get a PVP or patent on my varieties I would have to make a uniform bush brown version with all brown beans that was wimpier and lower yielding than Brown Resilient. But I’m not and I don’t. Ha ha ha! Brown Resilient is a sister variety1 to Beefy Resilient Grex and Beef-Bush Black Resilient. Bred by Carol Deppe, Fertile Valley Seeds.
Availability from OSSI Seed Company Partners
