Q: I bought seeds for a Lotto number plant. I planted it and it produced six numbers on the seed shell it after it sprouted. Currently the vine is about fifteen feet high. Can you identify it?

A: It looks like a bean of some sort. Hard to ID without seeing the flowers.

I’m not sure how the numbers are put onto the seeds.

Can anyone explain this process? Email me the facts!

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Wow – here’s the scoop, found by Joe M.

Message bean

“Magic Beans” and “Magic Plants” are rapidly gaining in popularity in various markets across the USA. The “Magic Bean” is a large, pink to reddish colored bean of the species Canavalia Gladiata, also known as the Swordbean. The bean pods of the Canavalia gladiata plant are sword shaped, and contain many large bean seeds.

 Sword Bean facts

The “Magic Bean” or “Message Bean” has been etched with short messages such as “I Love You” or “Happy Birthday? The message seed is nestled in a growing medium inside a decorative aluminum can. The “Magic Bean” is marketed as a gift alternative to the basic greeting card and the Message plants are given as gifts for special occasions and holidays.

Just Open, Water, and Watch your message bean grow to reveal the secret message on the cotyledon. The message will emerge in approximately 3-10 days. The message seed first appears with the outer seed coat covering the inner cotyledon. Without coaxing, the seed coat will fall off in a day or two to reveal the inner cotyledon. At first, the inner cotyledon is yellow, but with the addition of sunlight, the inner cotyledon will quickly turn green. The message seed will begin to splay open, somewhat like a butterfly spreads its wings, and send a leaf skyward, all the while exposing its special magic message for all to see.

It really is an amazing message plant. The message bean seedling proudly carries its amazing message for several weeks before the message dries up and falls off. Many people transplant the message plant into a large pot or into the ground to grow. The fast growing vine will climb and quickly cover a trellis, fence or a wall. The fruits of the message plant will grow to look like giant swords 12-18 inches long. The message bean plant will continue to grow for several years if it is grown in a warm climate, or kept indoors in a cooler climate.

The words on this amazing message plant are laser etched onto the seed by a patented process. Message Beans encoded with “Congratulations” and “Merry Christmas” can now be found in various markets throughout North America. The original recyclable aluminum containers, like those seen at the As Seen On TV websites, are making way for other types of containers, including biodegradable pots, where amazing message beans bearing magic wishes are available for many different types of consumers. Each individual aluminum container has a drain in the bottom, with a detachable plastic drainage tray with holes attached.

Once the message plant is opened and watered, the recipient makes magic wishes and waits anxiously for the message plant to emerge. Kids love to water and take care of this amazing message plant.