City Girl?

This summer I have been having fun exploring different farms thanks to my new favorite website pickyourown.org. Not only will this website give you information on every farmer's market, u-pick farm, pumpkin patch, etc. in your area, it also has great recipes, canning/freezing tips and lots of other fun resources. All that to say, on Monday I adjusted my work schedule so that my friend, Tina, and I could check out Harpole's Produce. If you live in the area I would highly recommend it - you can find the info under the Marion County section. This was a raw farm, not commercialized in the least and kind of sketchy looking at first. But, it was so perfect! Run by an older couple and their daughter, you can either purchase pre-picked produce at their "stand" (I use the term loosely) or they will point you down a dirt path, past the cows, goats and chickens where you can pick your own. They do not spray and nothing is marked, so you just roam through fields and find something you want and pick it. I was in u-picker's heaven, however, I do not know my crops well and at times was never quite sure if I was stepping on weeds or plants. We found all kinds of peppers ($0.10 each!), watermelon, butternut squash, pie pumpkins ($0.25/lb) and carving pumpkins ($0.09/lb), beans, zucchini, crook-neck squash and ran out of time for the corn (12/$1!) and apples. I had a blast and the kids had fun too, however, I discovered we need to work on Abby's girlishness as she told me she couldn't help pick the beans because, "they're muuudy" (and then seated herself in the mud to play with the beans I had already picked). Check out the size of this produce!If you are still reading, I'm impressed. So, here is the city girl part. At home I am washing, cutting and blanching these giant beans (some were 8" long!) when a seed pops out of the pod and I think to myself "these are the size of lima beans". Then I realize, maybe these are lima beans? I quickly google green bean vs. lima bean, but cannot seem to figure out the difference. After closer examination I am pretty sure that I picked 3 different types of beans. I just finished up and am not sure what now occupies the middle drawer of my freezer. Can you eat the pod of a lima? I guess we will soon find out what it tastes like!