For kids and adults alike, the crunch of biting on a raw green bean is quite satisfying.They can also be steamed, blanched, sauteed or roasted and enjoyed with butter, salt and pepper, or added to soup and stews.With cream of mushroom soup and onions, green beans can be made into a casserole.Green beans are also a favorite of canners because a summer abundance can be enjoyed for months to come.Pole beans, on the other hand, will just keep climbing upward and producing until killed by heat or frost, so staggering the planting times is not necessary.Regardless of what type you are planting, sow seeds outdoors 1 inch deep in fertile, well-worked soil after the last frost date in spring.Green beans grow best in soil with a pH between 6.0 and 7.0, which is a range of slightly acidic to precisely neutral.Green beans also require full sun — a minimum of six hours of direct sunlight daily.Three weeks before transplanting outdoors, sow seeds in sterile seed-starting mix kept at a temperature between 60° and 85° Fahrenheit, and they will germinate in 5 to 10 days.There are many garden trellises for sale, but make one yourself rather easily with three to four bamboo stakes tied into a teepee.Mulch will retain moisture between rainfall and watering and will keep the soil warm on cool nights.Organic mulch provides nutrients as it breaks down and also has the benefit of creating a barrier between the plant foliage and pathogens in the soil.Antigua is a bush bean with 5-inch, uniform, dark green pods and good disease resistance.Borsalino is a French bean with bright yellow pods that are at peak flavor when between 4 and 4 and a half inches long.It is a bush-type bean with vigorous, productive plants that grow up to 20 inches tall with good disease resistance.The plants reach 6-8 feet tall with flat, straight silvery-green pods that grow 6-8 inches long.Velour is a disease-resistant bush-type bean with striking, deep purple, smooth, round pods that grow 5 and a half inches long.Wyatt is a bush-type bean with productive, uniform plants and deep emerald green, tender pods that grow up to 6 and a half inches.Soaker hoses or drip irrigation next to the base of plants and set on automatic timers will ensure green beans always have the water they need.Just be sure to avoid overhead watering because getting plants wet will invite disease, especially if soil splashes on leaves.Floating row cover is a useful physical barrier between beetles and plants, but hard to use on pole beans.Thrips damage green bean leafs, flowers and pods, but they are so small, you likely won’t see them.Leafhoppers are small, light green or gray wedge-shaped insects that may show up in warm weather and damage bean foliage by sucking out plant juices, spreading diseases in the process.PyGanic 5.0, an organic, broad-spectrum contact insecticide made from pyrethrin, which is derived from Chrysanthemum, is a leafhopper control option.Avoid overhead watering and don’t touch the foliage or harvest the pods when the leaves are wet, to reduce spreading the fungus.And once the harvest is over, remove and destroy infected plants so the spores don’t overwinter and return next season.It’s important to pick pods before they get tough and stringy, which can happen if they are left on the plant for too long.Once harvested, enjoy green beans fresh or store them in the crisper drawer in a ban or container whole and unwashed for up to a week.The selection of all items featured in this post was based solely on merit and in no way influenced by any affiliate or financial incentive, or contractual relationship.At the time of this writing, Joe Lamp’l has professional relationships with the following companies who may have products included in this post: Rain Bird, Corona Tools, Milorganite, Soil3, Exmark, Greenhouse Megastore, High Mowing Organic Seeds, Territorial Seed Company, Wild Alaskan Seafood Box and TerraThrive. .
How to Grow Common Beans
Seeds sown too early can rot in cold, damp soil, and the plants need warm weather to thrive.Choose a planting site that gets lots of sun and has organically rich soil with sharp drainage.Make sure there are no tall shrubs or trees nearby that will create too much shade for the beans.Bush beans can be planted in rows 2.5 to 3 feet apart, with seeds placed 1 to 2 inches apart.Full sun also helps to keep the plants dry and less likely to be affected by certain issues, such as fungal diseases.Remove weeds prior to planting to prevent competition for soil nutrients and moisture.As the beans grow, weed carefully around the plants, as their shallow roots can be easily damaged.Use a drip irrigation system for supplemental watering to avoid splashing soil onto the leaves, which can lead to soil-borne diseases.Beans have shallow roots, and mulching can help to keep them cool and preserve moisture in the soil.If the soil temperature is below 60 degrees, seeds will germinate more slowly and are susceptible to rot.Pole beans produce over such a long period that they also will benefit from a side dressing of compost about halfway through their growing season.'Royal Burgundy': An early producing bush bean, it has purple pods that turn green when cooked.An early producing bush bean, it has purple pods that turn green when cooked.Gardeners usually harvest the beans when they are young and tender, about the size of a small pencil.Growing beans in a container can be helpful, especially when it comes time to regularly harvest your crop.An unglazed clay container is ideal because it will allow excess soil moisture to evaporate through its walls.Bean seeds are generally direct sown in the garden, as they dislike being transplanted.A quality potting mix that’s labeled for vegetables is usually ideal for growing beans.As long as you plant in a large enough container, you won’t have to repot these annuals during the growing season and disturb their roots.Spider mites pierce the leaf surface and suck the sap, often causing leaves to die.Bean leaf beetles can girdle the stems near the soil line and chew holes in the plant's leaves.Deer and groundhogs will eat entire bean plants, and fencing is necessary to stop them if they are prevalent in your area.Furthermore, fungal diseases, such as Alternaria leaf spot, can be a problem in damp conditions. .
Growing Green Beans: In Garden Beds and Containers
I grow both bush and pole types for the longest harvest season, planting them in my raised garden beds, but also in planters on my sunny back deck.Green beans are both easy and quick to grow, which also makes them the perfect vegetable for novice gardeners.They need to be grown up a trellis, teepee, tower, netting, or stakes and begin to crop eleven to twelve weeks from seeding.Green beans are a warm weather vegetable and the ideal planting time is after the danger of frost has passed in late spring.Before planting I amend the soil in my raised beds with an inch of compost and an application of a slow release organic vegetable fertilizer to provide nutrients like nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorous.When growing green beans, don’t be in a rush to sow the seeds as planting when the soil is still cold and wet can lead to rot.Most types of beans are direct seeded outdoors as they are quick to germinate and don’t respond well to transplanting.Pole beans need a sturdy structure to support their heavy vines and trellises or teepees should be erected before you plant the seeds.It adds vertical interest to the garden and is a fun spot to hang out in summer – a living fort!Consistent moisture results in the highest quality harvest, so water weekly if there has been no rain, paying careful attention to irrigation when the plants are flowering and producing pods.Mulch plants with straw or shredded leaves to hold soil moisture and reduce weed growth.Pick pods at any size, but most are ready when they’re 4 to 6 inches long, smooth, and with interior beans that are still very small.The compact plants yield a heavy crop of super slender green pods produced on top of the foliage – easy picking!The compact plants yield a heavy crop of super slender green pods produced on top of the foliage – easy picking!The smooth pods are about 5 inches long and the plants are resistant to several diseases including powdery mildew.Emerite – I’ve been growing this green pole bean for over a decade and its tender, flavorful pods have made this a family favorite.– I’ve been growing this green pole bean for over a decade and its tender, flavorful pods have made this a family favorite.This French-type pole bean is incredibly productive, yielding stringless, slender green pods that can grow up to 10 inches long!This French-type pole bean is incredibly productive, yielding stringless, slender green pods that can grow up to 10 inches long! .
How to Plant and Grow Green Beans
If you’re hoping to grow more of your own food this year, green beans are a great place to start.Although easy enough to pick up at the grocery store, nothing beats the taste and nutrition of homegrown veggies.Quick to germinate, low maintenance, and great for canning and freezing, this prized legume is one of the most rewarding seasonal veggies to grow.Green beans don’t love to be transplanted, so starting seeds indoors isn’t recommended.Large seeds and fast results make planting green beans a perfect activity for kids.Plants can tolerate partial shade, but you’ll find yourself enjoying fewer tasty pods.To keep the harvest coming, sow seeds every two to four weeks, until two months or so before your area’s average first frost date.When plants – particularly the bush type – start slowing down in productivity, get them out of the garden and into the compost bin and then sow more.Not only does mulch retain soil moisture, but it also helps to protect green beans’ shallow roots, which can easily be damaged.Since pollinators aren’t needed, poor productivity usually comes down to a lack of sun or nutrient imbalances in the soil.One of biggest challenges when growing green beans is keeping pests from eating them before you have a chance to.Deer and rabbits will munch on plants at any point in the season, if left vulnerable.Wet leaves and the coolness of night are a bad combination, providing ideal conditions for many types of diseases to form.Even if you have never grown a vegetable in your life, you stand nothing to lose by popping a few green bean seeds in the ground.Try these recipes for sriracha tofu stir fry from Foodal, an easy roasted version from The Gingered Whisk, or a twist on a classic, Greek yogurt green bean casserole. .
Time to plant green beans
I usually try to plant them as early as possible to avoid pest and heat, both of which tend to diminish the quality of the crop.Because green beans are not frost tolerant and do not do so well in high heat, many prefer to grow them as a fall crop.If in doubt, the above mentioned publication gives varieties that have been tested for our area.Pod shape, size and color vary among varieties, giving an assortment of choices to the home gardener.One interesting fact about the pole beans is that some of the varieties produce a somewhat flattened pod instead of a rounded one.As long as you keep picking your pole beans every couple of days, the plant will keep producing.Pods should be full size with small seeds and firm, crisp flesh when snapped.Whichever type and variety suits your need, be sure to plant some green beans this year for a fresh taste that can't be found in a can. .
Growing Great Green Beans
If grown right, green beans can be just as much of a home-grown treat as sweet corn.The single most important trick to growing truly mouth-watering green beans (yes, there is such a thing) is to harvest them often and small.Always go with stringless green beans—no unpleasant fibrous string growing along the beans' "underbelly.".The pole type bears a week or two later, but takes up very little square footage.I usually grow 10 to 12 pole plants, enough to provide plenty of green beans for the dinner table for my family of about four from July through September.• When the green beans germinate and shoot up out of the ground, thin (that is, pull out the extra plants) to the spacing specified on the seed packet. .
