Boiled and salted edamame pods are a tasty snack.
Edamame is the vegetable form of the soybean grown by farmers around the world. The beans of the edamame are nutritious and can be used as a snack food or served as a vegetable. The food is more commonly served in Japan, though it is gaining ground on American menus. The edamame's growth pattern is similar to other, more familiar, varieties of bush beans. Edamame grows well in any area where bush or pole beans thrive.
Instructions
1. Work the soil in the standard manner for the garden or field. This includes tilling gardens to a depth of about 6 to 8 inches and raking the surface level. Farm fields are worked to the same depth using tractor powered tillage equipment.
2. Plant the edamame, a warm-season crop, when soil temperatures are about 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Soil temperature is measured 2 inches under the surface of the garden. Planting the edamame seed too early may lead to the seed decaying before the soil warms enough for germination. Plant seeds about 1 inch deep with spacing within the row of about 2 inches. Plan for rows about 24 inches apart.
3. Plant a second crop of edamame about two weeks after the first. Use the same planting spacing and process. This extends the harvest period and keeps fresh edamame on the table longer.
4. Water the edamame crop as needed. Supplement natural rain with irrigation to furnish the plant with 10 inches of moisture through the peak growing season of June through August.
5. Hoe or cultivate the area between the rows of the edamame through the early summer. This is necessary during the development of the plants. As the plant reaches its full 24-inch height, fewer weeds are able to grow in its shade.
6. Harvest the edamame by hand when the pods are still green. If the seed pods begin to turn yellow, you've missed optimum taste and quality in the crop. Harvest will amount to 1 lb. of edamame beans and pods for each 3-feet of plant row.
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