Does anyone know the species of the plant being sold around the place as magic bean or message bean? You know the ones which germinate to reveal a message laser'd into the cotyledons?
I hadn't heard of these, so I had a little Google around and came up with both Canavalia gladiata (sword bean) and C. ensiformis (jack bean). They both appear to be edible beans used in Asia. I gather there is more than one 'producer' of these message beans, so other types of beans may be used as well.
Canavalia ensiformis is what I have seen. Thanks very much Dee. Nice piece of detective work. I did do some searches myself but must have gone up a blind alley with it.
I've seen the Castanospermum too being sold as 'magic bean'. What I'm talking about is a different thing where they laser a message into the seed before planting and when the seedling emerges and its cotyledons are spread the message can be read. I haven't seen this trick done with black bean (yet) as I think the companies producing these are overseas.
