|
Broad
Beans
we planted these
two rows of broad beans on July 18th and harvested a total of 10kg of
shelled beans all through December. The row on the left is Coles New
Dwarf, the one on the right is Early Long Pod. We did not find any
differences between them.
|
 |
Companion planting:
Like: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, corn, lettuce,
marjoram, potato, spinach
Dislike: garlic, onions
Sow late March to
August, harvest October to December
Varieties used:
Coles Dwarf
Early Long Pod
Aqua Dulce (grows higher than the others, falls over easier)
Grow broad beans in
double rows, so they can support each other. Sow seeds 15 cm apart.
Preserving:
Shell beans, wash, water blanche for 3 minutes, cool quickly and freeze
 |
Bush (French)
Beans
left: Royal Burgundy bush
beans planted in early December. They grew and they produced very well
right: Royal Burgundy and
Cherokee Wax bush beans planted in early January. They grew very slowly,
remained stunted and produced small, dry and not very tasty beans. Even
though they were watered and fertilized in just the same way, this late
planting did not work.
|
 |
Companion planting:
Like: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, corn, cucumber,
marjoram, potato, strawberries, sunflower
Dislike: garlic, onions
Sow late October to
mid December, harvest January to March
Varieties used:
Blue Lake
Purple Queen
Royal Burgundy
Cherokee Wax
All grew and
produced well for bush beans; the first 3 varieties tasted pretty much the
same; Cherokee wax was tenderer, but the yield was not quite as high. Bush
beans produce heavily for a short time; the yield is less than with climbing
beans. Don’t leave beans on the plant for too long. Hill the soil around the
stems for support. Sow seeds 15 cm apart, 3 cm deep.
Preserving:
Wash, remove stems and cut beans into pieces, water blanche for 3 minutes or
steam blanche for 4 minutes, cool quickly and freeze
|
|
Climbing
Beans
left:
Scarlet Emperor runner beans planted in early December
right: Kentucky
Wonder and Blue Lake climbing beans planted in November
|
|
Companion planting:
Like: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, corn, cucumber,
eggplant, marigold, lettuce, marjoram, parsley, parsnip, potato, rosemary, sage
Dislike: garlic, onions
Sow late
September to
mid December, harvest January to April
Varieties used:
Kentucky Wonder (The Lost
Seed)
Blue Lake (The Lost Seed)
Scarlet Runner (Goodman Seeds)
Runner, Scarlet Emperor (The Lost Seed)
Sow seeds 15 cm
apart (20 cm for Runner beans), 3 cm deep.
Grow on 2.5 m long strings or on a tepee. If
grown on a tepee leave an opening, so you can reach the inside of the tepee
when harvesting. Don’t leave beans on the plant for too long.
All grew very well with high yields. Runner beans are also called 7 year beans;
vines die down each winter and shoot again in the spring.
Preserving:
Wash, remove stems and cut beans into pieces, water blanche for 3 minutes or
steam blanche for 4 minutes, cool quickly and freeze
| Shelling
Beans
This is a trial planting of
Red Kidney beans. We planted them too late, in early January. Even though
they grew reasonably well they are not yet ready to be harvested (middle
of April).
|
 |
Companion planting:
Like: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, corn, cucumber,
marjoram, potato, strawberries, sunflower
Dislike: garlic, onions
We will try growing
some of these next year, provided we can get the seeds:
Borlotti
Red kidney beans
Red Lima beans
Haricot beans
Cannellini beans
 |
Beans harvested in February (in the front from
the left):
- Scarlet Emperor runner beans (normally harvested much smaller)
- Cherokee Wax butter beans
- Kentucky Wonder climbing beans
- Royal Burgundy bush beans |
|
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)