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I was reading a lesson in Japanese and they translated this phrase like this:

> 枝豆、いつできるかなあ。
>
> = Edamame, itsu dekiru kanaa.
>
> I wonder when I can harvest Edamame.

kanaa = I wonder  
dekiru = be able to  
itsu = when

Where is the "harvest" here?
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2017-03-14T13:09:27.670
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2017-03-15T06:47:02.367
2020-06-17T08:18:27.500
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question
translation
Is this phrase missing something?
This できる is a simple intransitive verb that means "to form", "to be
made/completed/ready". Thus 「枝豆、いつできるかなあ。」 literally means "I wonder when
edamade will be ready."

There is no word that corresponds to "harvest" here. Edamame is both the name
of the beans and the name of a dish. Depending on the context, this sentence
can mean both "I wonder when edamame (beans) will be ready (for harvesting)."
and "I wonder when edamame (dish) will be ready (for eating)."
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2017-03-14T18:10:50.323
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2017-03-14T18:10:50.323
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According to 明鏡国語辞典:

> できる【出来る】❶ 事物が新たに生じる。  
>  ㋒ 作物が（立派に）育つ。また、立派に育って収穫される。「今年は特別に甘みの強いナシができた」「この地方ではいい米ができる」

Other than "be able to do (some action)", the verb できる has several other
meanings, and one of its primary/basic meanings is "for something to come into
existence." できる can be used to mean "to grow (well)" or "to grow well and be
harvested", hence the translation "I wonder when I can harvest Edamame."

Of course the できる in your example sentence can also be interpreted as "to be
cooked / prepared" "to be ready to eat", as @naruto has pointed out.

As an aside, dictionaries will tell you that できる can also be used to say "to
be made / produced / born / formed / organized" "to be finished / completed"
"(for someone) to be quick / excellent / competent / mature" "to do well (in
exams etc.)" "to be in relationship", etc.
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2017-03-14T23:35:45.200
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2017-03-15T06:47:02.367
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answer