The Show Garden module is based on a network of associations, producers and institutes who are growing legumes and want to share their know-how and their gardening joy to a broad public online. Together, we produce and publish short videos on Youtube to showcase the diversity of cultivation methods for a diversity of legumes in many countries.
Each show garden takes us on a journey through the growing season, from planning and preparing the seeds to the harvest and maybe even cooking methods, with of course the beautiful germination and flowering (and weeding) steps in between!
The Show Gardens were at the forefront of the June 2022 Global Bean Event: In the Showgardens! Watch a live Garden tour in the Showgardens below:
Participants
Click on the name to jump to the corresponding section.
- Parterrenet Jardin – France 🇫🇷
- Global Field Berlin/ 2000m2 – Germany 🇩🇪
- Landwirtschaftliches Technologiezentrum Augustenberg (LTZ) – Germany 🇩🇪
- Ecological Education Center (ÖBZ) – Germany 🇩🇪
- Genbänkle e.V- Germany 🇩🇪
- Marburger Ernährungsrat – Vitamin’N – Germany 🇩🇪
- Tiny Farms Berlin – Germany 🇩🇪
- Sito, Greek Seed Association – Greece 🇬🇷
- Global Field India/Edible Routes – India 🇮🇳
- Seed Savers Kenya – Kenya 🇰🇪
- Sementes Vivas – Spain 🇪🇸/Portugal🇵🇹
- AlVelAl Association – Spain 🇪🇸
- Weltacker Attiswil – Switzerland 🇨🇭
- Guest: Rete Semi Rurali – 🇮🇹
Parterrenet Jardin – France 🇫🇷
Jean Paul cultivates legumes in a 300 square meter garden.
“I am myself a enthusiastic home gardener who appreciates to grow and cook legumes such as chickpea, bean and lentils. To act, to cultivate, to improve and to glorify life, what a programme! I support this Global bean project which, like Jack’s beanstalk, transcends our limiting conceptions.”
Cultivated legumes: Chickpeas, Black Chickpeas, other climbing beans, Faba beans…
Latest video:
Sito, Greek Seed Association – Greece 🇬🇷
Nikos Garden
Nikos Dompazis cultivates traditional varieties of vegetables and legumes in Northern Greece (Komotini) in a garden of approx. 700 m2, since 1996. He grows traditional varieties of legumes (beans, peas, black-eyed peas) and vegetables (tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, carrot, etc). At the winter period there are no legumes in the garden, apart from young pea plants. Nikos is a founding member of the local seed savers network in his area, Sporites Rodopis.
Holy monastery of St John the Baptist
The Holy Monastery of St John the Baptist in central Greece (mt Kissavos, Larissa) has a long history in seed keeping and organizing seed exchanges. In the 4.000 m2 vegetable garden, legumes (beans -climbing and low-, peas, black – eyed peas etc) are planted in spring, covering approx. 1.000 m2 . Because of the high altitude and the heavy winter, there is no possibility of growing legumes during the winter period.
Global Field Berlin – Germany 🇩🇪
“1,5 billion hectare of arable land divided by 7,5 billion people worldwide provide 2000 m² per person. On a 2000m² Global Field, we grow true to size the proportional share of the most important arable crops of the world (including many legumes).”
Cultivated Legumes: Soybean, Limabohne (Phaseolus lunatus), Common Beans (P. vulgaris ‘Purple Tepee’), Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata var. sesquipedalis ‘Canetti’), Black Turtle Bean (P. vulgaris), Uridbohne (Vigna mungo), Mung beans (Vigna radiata), Helmbohne (Vigna radiata), Scarlet Runner Bean (P. coccineus), Augenbohne (Vigna unguiculata), Pea (Pisum sativum ‘Schweizer Riesen’), Chickpea (Cicer arietinum, ‘Black Kabuli’), Lentils(Lens culinaris ‘Marmorierte Linse’), Peanut(Arachis hypogaea), Straucherbse (Cajanus cajan), Desmodium (Desmodium intortum)…
Landwirtschaftliches Technologiezentrum Augustenberg (LTZ) – Germany 🇩🇪
The LTZ is the state institute for agriculture in Baden-Württemberg. In 2012, the state government of Baden-Württemberg started its protein initiative (Eiweißinitiative), in which LTZ is responsible for grain legumes. The aim is to generate, summarize and communicate information on growing and using grain legumes.
Cultivated legumes: Soybean, chickpea, groundnut, many bean varieties including “Dalmatian” beans, black beans…
Ecological Education Center (ÖBZ) – Germany 🇩🇪
“We are a volunteer group within the community garden project at the Ecological Education Center in Munich and collect varieties of beans that are no longer in commercial use. We now have over 200 varieties! Our goal is to spread the use of old bean varieties and raise awareness on the importance of seed autonomy.”
The garden & cultivated legumes: 9 bean Islands of 10m², plot with bush beans and climbing beans, plot with bush beans, “protein field” with beans, soy, peanuts, lentils, a plot with scarlet runner beans.
Marburger Ernährungsrat – Vitamin’N – Germany 🇩🇪
Local initiative and private blog promoting health, nature and sustainability. Creating awareness about food consumption and agriculture. Supporting small farmers (setting up a local food cooperation).
Member and cooperation with the food council of Marburg.
We are building a Global Bean Show Garden in our community to raise awareness for legumes and demonstrate biodiversity.
Cultivated legumes: 22 types of runner beans, 5 types of scarlet runner beans, 8 types of bush beans, faba beans, bush beans, and peas.
Tiny Farms Berlin – Germany 🇩🇪
A growing network of digitally connected microfarms, Tiny Farms grows organic regional vegetables for cities. The first pioneer farms have been founded around Berlin. Through the Tiny Farms Academy we enable people to enter professional agriculture.
Global Field India/Edible Routes – India 🇮🇳
Edible Routes is one of India’s largest organic farming organisation. At Edible Routes, we are moving towards creating a world of conscious and healthy people who care for themselves and the earth.
Cultivated legumes: Cowpeas, Yardlong beans, Pigeon peas, Broad beans, French beans, Sweet peas, purple beans…
Seed Savers Kenya – Kenya 🇰🇪
Seed savers Network(SSN) is a national membership based farmers organization. SSN works at grassroots level with a mission to conserve agrobiodiversity by strengthening communities seed systems for improved food and nutritional security.
Cultivated legumes: Phaseolus vulgaris, intercropped with maize.
Global Field Attiswil – Switzerland 🇨🇭
“2000m2 Global Plot” in Attiswil. “Beans” will be our annual topic in 2022 with little show gardens, installations and events at the educational sites in order to make visitors aware of the great potential of beans and pulses for a healthy diet and healthy soils.
AlVelAl Association – Spain 🇪🇸
We are an Association that unites farmers, livestock breeders, businessmen from various sectors, traders, researchers from universities and other institutions.
Our goal is to restore the landscape by creating business cases that add value to local products and generate sustainable employment.
Cultivated legumes: Chickpeas on a 40ha field, for consumption
Sementes Vivas – Spain 🇪🇸/Portugal🇵🇹
100% organic and biodynamic seed company, from R&D (plant breeding), production, processing, storage, packaging, distribution. Semillas Vivas is the sister company in Spain. 35 contracted organic or Demeter farmers multiplying seeds. Living Seeds operates an own farm in Idanha a Nova with several trial fields and production areas.
What about you?
Until the 20th of June we’re still open for a few more participants!
Videos are 2 to 5 minutes long, and can be shot with the mobile phone (horizontal) in your own language. The main thing is to show something exciting to the public and to communicate your love for gardening and legume plants! 🌱.
We have guideline sheets and a small budget for each garden committing to send at least six videos before the end of 2022. If you would like to participate or know someone who would, please don’t wait and contact us as at , before June 20th!
