Thisisme, sorry for the delayed response; I've been offline since October due to a dead computer. The only yardlong I've grown that even remotely resembles a snap bean is "Sierra Madre", from the Philippines. I don't think it is sold in the U.S., unless under a different name. It's similar in length to "Galante" above (also from the Philippines), but darker green & wider. HOWEVER... I've often said that you can learn good things in a bad year, and this year I learned something new about yardlongs. There was record rainfall in my area this year. While beans struggled (they don't like wet feet) the yardlongs flourished. All of the yardlongs stayed tender to a larger width than I usually consider usable; they really benefited from all the extra moisture. Up until now, when irrigation was necessary (it wasn't this year) I've always watered everything equally. From now on, the yardlongs get more frequent watering. So I guess what I am saying is for the largest (widest) beans regardless of the variety - mulch the roots heavily & keep them watered. I don't know how well yardlongs will tolerate the extreme heat of the desert Southwest. They are tropical plants, but do their best in warm humid locations. Only one way to find out, I suppose. ;-) It may be that you would need to shelter the plants with shade cloth over the top during the hottest part of the summer, leaving the sides open. Mey, unfortunately there are both common beans & yardlong seeds that match both of your descriptions above. There are many black-seeded yardlong cultivars, quite a few of which are sold in the U.S. There are also brown or reddish-brown seeds w/white patches; the varieties I have from the Philippines share this characteristic. I'll try to post a comparative photo of some of my yardlong seeds... but if you are able to post a photo of yours, I could help with the identification.

I hadn't had the time to comment on this yet, but my heart goes out to the Australians, people and animals, caught in this inferno (yes, it's been all over the news here as well). Portugal went through a similar situation a few Summers ago and I cannot tell you the nerve wreacking experience it was for all of us, even those who didn't suffer with the fires, as was my case. Living in a heavily wooded area - and full of pines, no less, which act as a torch - I'm always dreading the Summer days when they can be set on fire by a single match in the hands of a demented arsonist. My heart goes out to all Australians who are enduring this awful situation and hope temperatures and winds subside quickly so they can put out the remaining fires. As usually happens in the middle of tragedies, there are also stories of rescue and hope, such as the one in the link below. Eduarda Here is a link that might be useful: Koala saved from Australian inferno

OMG, I always knew my mother was a terrible cook and hated to cook, but this is the ultimate. She had a Toas-tite when I was growing up and used it all of the time, but I never knew it was supposed to be used for toasting things until now. She only used it to cut the crust off of my sandwiches and make them round! Wow, I could have had hot meals all of those years... who knew! I can't wait to tell her what that gadget was really supposed to be used for. I've even told my DH about the thing and how dumb I always thought it was (buying this big thing just to cut the crust off of bread). It was a real pain too, because the bread would always get stuck in it. I guess if it was toasted that wouldn't have happened, though. Amazing!!

I just had to report back that I took a "Roast My Weenie" rootin' tootin' cowboy to my previously mentioned party. I wrapped him and then did a little extra package with a frozen wiener (so it would still be "fresh" by the time the gifts were being opened). Well, it was the hit of the party, except the woman who ended up with it happened to be a vegetarian. The wiener was quickly replace by a carrot, which looked equally as ridiculous as the wiener...so now she has a carrot griller. I also bought Marsha Mellow, which I thought I would take to next year's party. But my dear friend ended up having a 2nd mastectomy on December 21, so I'm giving her Marsha and a bag of marshmallows for those times she's feeling a need for some humor. Thanks again for this thread. Great fun!