THE largest string beans in the world may be seen growing in the gardens of Charles Richardson, in Pasadena, Cal. They range from thirty to forty-three inches in length, and average half an inch in width. They are not only enormously large, but they make a delightful table delicacy when cut and stewed and prepared with cream and butter. The commercial gardener would find them a most profitable production; for the vines bear profusely, and the beans are so large that one of them is more than a single person can comfortably manage. These beans are of an aristocratic species, and do not claim alliance with the common string bean. California botanists class them as belonging to the genus Dolichos, but owing to their great length they are more popularly known as “yard beans.” The plants are natives of China and Japan, and the seeds were sent to Mr. Richardson from Japan. Early in the spring he planted them in a well-spaded, well-fertilized trench, and put up a trellis seventeen feet in height to support the vines. The seeds sprouted quickly, and the plants began to grow with a vengeance. They climbed to the tops of the poles, and then turned around and began to grow backward. They are now twenty-five feet in length, and are still growing. The row is thirty feet long, contains fifty vines, and it has been estimated that the crop amounts to ten thousand yards of beans. The beans grow in clusters, and can be easily and quickly gathered. The fragrant lavender blossoms resemble those of the sweet pea. They are peculiar in their habits, living but for a day, opening with the sun, and dropping their petals when the sun goes down. The leaves are long and wide, and grow in clusters of three. The vines are very clean and attractive, and would be decidedly ornamental in any summer garden for either fence or trellis covering. The beans are best for eating when about twenty inches long. In flavor they excel that of the ordinary string bean.—Scientific American.