Italian Black

Vines, primarily prostrate with moderate climbing tendency. Purple flowers. Slight purple pigmentation at tip of racemes and pods. Pods dry to brown. Long, slightly curved, pendant pods, 7-10" long by 0.4" wide. Standard productivity. Eaten as a string bean by donor when less than 6" long. Black, kidney-shaped seeds. 11-17 seeds per pod. Dry cowpeas have a slightly tannic, nutty flavor. Firm texture with a thin skin. Early maturing--4 weeks ahead of other cowpeas when grown at Heritage Farm in 2013. Donated to SSE by Carmen Zwick (CA ZW C) who obtained it in 1990 from Mark Santangelo (MA SA M). Originally brought to the US from Catania, Sicily by the Santangelo family circa 1900-1910. Passed down from Mark's grandfather, Agatino Santangelo, to Mark's father, Salvatore. The family uses it as a string bean, cooked & served with tomato sauce. SSE Accession # 108959