Dragon Tongue Bush Bean

A Dutch bush bean with wide flat pods, cream-colored and painted with purple streaks that vanish the moment they hit hot water. Eat them raw off the plant while you pick — the flavor is sweeter and nuttier than any green bean has a right to be. Left on the plant to dry they make a fine shelling bean. No trellis needed; the bushes hold themselves up at about knee height.

Where it comes from. A Dutch heirloom, grown in Europe well before it reached American gardens.