Got Milk? (I'll need it for my protein)

Thursday, July 13, 2006

On the seed packet, it said that these green soybeans -- the Tohya variety of edamame -- are 40% protein. That's so much protein that they're nicknamed "the meat without bones."

Well... throw me a fish or a slice of chicken, please, because I'm definitely not going to get enough protein from the few beans we've got here -- about six pods, at most. And these are on one -- yes, only one -- lonely little plant. Out of about 12 seeds, it was the only one that germinated.

So I went back to the seed sowing instructions and I saw there was a note: "Seed does not store well and old seed is a big contributor to home garden failure." (Hmmm... I hope they meant "crop failure" because complete "home garden failure" sounds rather ominous to me.) I guess I got a packet of tired, old seeds. Bummer.

Well, with nothing to lose at this point, I sowed a bunch more seeds the other day. I mean, if they're not going to keep until next year, why not just give them a try? It's probably too late in the season, though; I realize.

Of course, I could just say I'll stick to buying bags of edamame from the frozen foods aisle and be done with it. But then again, the gardener in me -- the tenacious me -- doesn't want to give up. I really want to grow some of my own.

So maybe, just maybe, with a fresh packet of seeds, I'll have better luck next year. I'm willing to give it one more try.