Lima Bean Seeds Symbol Analysis

Kim’s lima bean seeds symbolize having hope for the future even in the midst of bleak circumstances. For Kim specifically, planting the lima bean seeds symbolizes her hope that she’ll be able to grow a garden and connect with her father’s spirit—he died before she was born, and he used to be a farmer, so she hopes that gardening will help her find a sense of closeness with her late father.

Kim plants her seeds early in the spring—long before it’s warm enough for the seeds to do well—and in an unlikely place, hidden from view behind a refrigerator in an abandoned lot. Given her lack of knowledge and their less-than-ideal location, it seems unlikely, if not impossible, that they’ll grow. But, against all odds, the seeds begin to sprout. Wendell, an elderly man who waters the struggling bean sprouts at Ana’s request, discovers that the seeds were only able to sprout in these difficult conditions because the shiny refrigerator bounced light and heat back onto the soil, creating a small area that’s warm enough to support the seeds. Though he’s usually a cynical, closed-off person, Wendell takes this as a sign that it’s worthwhile to hope for the better, even when it doesn’t seem likely that things will ever improve.

Indeed, Kim’s choice to plant her lima beans in the vacant lot is only the first hopeful act that ultimately leads to the establishment of the community garden. And later, both Sae Young and Florence also position the bean seeds as a symbol of hope. After grappling with her husband’s sudden death and experiencing a traumatic assault, Sae Young spends years isolated in her apartment, fearful of the world and other people. But when she sees a girl (presumably Kim) tending to lima beans in the community garden, it spurs Sae Young to slowly but surely reengage with the community and rebuild her life. The lima beans—and the garden more broadly—show Sae Young that despite all of the trauma she’s faced in the past, hope is not lost for a better future.

The novel comes to a close in early spring, a year after Kim first plants her lima bean seeds. Florence, who loves watching the goings on at the garden, describes seeing an Asian girl digging out in the garden—presumably, Kim planting next year’s crop of lima beans. Florence worries all winter that people will lose interest in the garden and that it won’t resume in the spring, but Kim’s planting gives Florence hope that the garden will continue to thrive.