Pole-Bean_Magic-Bean_Appalachian-Growers-Seed-Collective.png
Bean Seeds, Magic, green beans on the plant
Bean Seeds, Magic, purple beans on the plant
Bean Seeds, Magic, multi-color pods on the plant
Pole-Bean_Magic-Bean_Appalachian-Growers-Seed-Collective.png
Bean Seeds, Magic, green beans on the plant
Bean Seeds, Magic, purple beans on the plant
Bean Seeds, Magic, multi-color pods on the plant

Bean Seeds, Magic

$4.50

Magic Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris): A 'Magic Mix' pole bean mystery variety that came from the black-seed pole bean, ‘Cherokee Trail of Tears’, from Mr. Bill Best, renowned Appalachian seed saver. Fully embracing the mystery of this magical bean, Chris Smith has combined the magical beans with another magical batch of ‘Maggie Flowers’ beans, which sported (or crossed) to become vining and yellow/white seeded. Chris Smith has been growing these since 2015 and loves the mix because they always produce a healthy crop of green beans and seeds despite heavy bean beetle pressure, without spray or irrigation. Great as fresh eating green beans or winter-stored dried beans.

Packet Weight (avg. seeds): 14 g (25 avg. seeds per packet)

Seed Grower: USP, Leicester, NC

USA Shipping Only | $5 Flat Rate or FREE Shipping on Orders over $45 | Our collective members pack and ship the seeds together. First Ship Date, Feb 15, 2026.

Magic Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris): A 'Magic Mix' pole bean mystery variety that came from the black-seed pole bean, ‘Cherokee Trail of Tears’, from Mr. Bill Best, renowned Appalachian seed saver. Fully embracing the mystery of this magical bean, Chris Smith has combined the magical beans with another magical batch of ‘Maggie Flowers’ beans, which sported (or crossed) to become vining and yellow/white seeded. Chris Smith has been growing these since 2015 and loves the mix because they always produce a healthy crop of green beans and seeds despite heavy bean beetle pressure, without spray or irrigation. Great as fresh eating green beans or winter-stored dried beans.

Packet Weight (avg. seeds): 14 g (25 avg. seeds per packet)

Seed Grower: USP, Leicester, NC

USA Shipping Only | $5 Flat Rate or FREE Shipping on Orders over $45 | Our collective members pack and ship the seeds together. First Ship Date, Feb 15, 2026.

The 'Magic Mix' pole bean is an ongoing mystery. In 2014 Chris Smith grew 'Cherokee Trail of Tears', a well-known black-seeded pole bean that was carried along the Trail of Tears by Cherokee seed keepers as they were forcibly expelled from their ancestral homelands in Tennessee in the 1830s. The seeds Chris planted were sourced from Mr. Bill Best, renowned seed saver with a very large bean collection! They were the only beans Chris grew in 2014 and he harvested a healthy amount of beautiful purple/black beans for eating and replanting the following year. The following year the beans exploded into a wide diversity of phenotypes and have continued to shift and express themselves over time. Chris reached out to Mr. Best to try and find an answer to the mystery, but neither of them could fathom how this happened given the low level of outcrossing and complete isolation of the beans. Chris decided to stop trying to solve the mystery and instead lean into the magic of the process (secretly hoping his superpower was to induce random and beautiful genetic diversity in legumes). The superpower theory may be true. In 2021, Chris’ planting of Maggie Flowers Pink Bunch beans transformed into pole beans that showed pink, brown, white, and green seeds. In 2023, Chris combined his Magic Beans with the new 'Maggie Flowers' mix as the final step in fully embracing this beautiful mix of (probably / mostly) pole beans. One reason Chris loves planting these beans is that they always produce a healthy crop of green beans and seeds despite heavy bean beetle pressure. Over many years of growing with no spraying or irrigating, it’s safe to say that this diverse mix is quite tough! Embrace the mystery and diversity of these magic beans! And let us know if anything especially cool crops up for you!!