GREEN BEANS

VARIETIES: There are many kinds of very acceptable green beans to grow. However, I am limiting our discussion to two primary types based upon how they grow. Pole beans (or climbing beans) and bush beans. Bush beans are, well, bushy. They will be two to three feet tall when mature. Pole beans climb up a trellis arrangement. When mature they will easily climb six feet high. When they fill out they will cause shade on any other plants close by. If you have plenty of room I would suggest ‘bush’ beans. When space is limited I would use ‘pole’ beans and better utilize your garden space by allowing the plants to grow upward.

WHERE TO LOCATE: If you use bush beans plant them anywhere in your garden just so that they are not in the shade of other taller plants.(Such as corn or tomatoes) If you use ‘pole’ beans plant them so that their shadows will not keep other plants from getting sun. Give these plants full sunlight.

SEEDS OR SETS? Use seeds here. I’m not even sure you can find sets and even if I could I wouldn’t use them. Green beans are easy to plant and germinate. They are $1.00 a pack and will provide you with fifty or so plants. Much more cost effective than sets. Beans are seeds of a plant. However, don’t go into your cupboard and try to plant those you already have. Most have been treated to keep them from sprouting.

HOW TO PLANT: Choose the type you want and soak the seeds in water overnight (or for a few hours) and plant them ½ to 1 inch deep. Just stick a finger in the soil to the first joint or so. ½ inch is about right for quick germination. Pat the soil back down over the hole with the bean seed at the bottom. Your soil will already be loose since you will dig up the space in advance, turning the soil over and breaking up any clumps. They will germinate within a few days. I plant mine in rows. It seems, however, that in some sections every seed will sprout while in others only one or two will sprout. When they are 1-2 inches tall I take a tablespoon, dig out some to thin them to four inches apart, and transplant the ones I took out to the areas which did not sprout. Water the ground before you do this and water them again afterwards. Water repairs most kinds of root damage and allows the plant to recover from the experience of being uprooted and moved. So long as you go three or four inches under the new plant and a couple of inches to the side you won’t hurt it at all. By the way don’t leave a portion of a plant’s roots uncovered when you transplant its neighbor. Gently pack the dirt back around it.

SUPPORT: Bush beans do not need support. However, pole beans do. They send out long skinny tendrils after a couple of weeks. These tendrils attach to whatever is available, wrap around it a few times, and then keep growing upward. Leaves will pop out periodically along these tendrils (or vines), blossoms will form in the leaves, and clusters of green beans soon appear. After the beans have germinated and I have transplanted the ones I want to move, I stick poles into the ground surrounding them. One pole every five feet or so on both sides of the plot of beans and at each corner. Put some in the middle if you have a wide patch. Then I string shipping cord or hemp string between the poles. For poles I use the green, plastic coated, metal tomato stakes around seven or eight feet in length. Plan on one foot of the poles to be in the ground. Two tips here: (1) Begin by stringing the tops of the poles together first and make the poles bend in a little so that the twine has pressure on it. If you start at the bottom, by the time you get to the top the bottom ones will hang loose. After stringing the tops of the poles together, go to the bottom next and work your way up. (2) I install my strings at an angle. Beans love to run UP, not sideways.

The beans will amaze you as they grow. The tendrils can grow one foot in a day. You will see one close to one of your strings, look away, and when you look back it will be wrapped several times around the string. It will then take off upward again. To me this is one of the miracles of Nature. How do they know to do that?

For an example go on this site to the article titled "Choosing your Garden Site". At the top is a picture of the beginning of the string framework. I added more string later on as the beans grew upward.

HOW TO NURTURE: I give supplemental feedings to my green bean plants. This is a situation where water soluble Miracle Grow is perfect. Dissolve in water according to instructions on the pack and using a water container with an elongated pour spout wet the ground directly around the stem of the plants. The nutrients will soak into the ground and contribute to the plant’s growth. I suggest doing this every week or ten days. Water these plants daily. Watch for leaf fungus as they grow and if you spot it treat as indicated below.

WHEN TO PICK: I like smaller green beans so I pick them when five to six inches or long. They can grow to eight or nine inches and still be good. However, sometimes the bean will get stringy along its outer edges. Then before you break them into smaller segments for cooking you need to remove the strings by breaking off the tip and carefully pulling out the stringy part with it. Instead of simply pulling them off the vine to harvest use scissors so that you don't damage the vine.

PESTS:
Reader's tip: Chester Burley of CT writes that he uses marigolds. 'Plant marigolds thru out your garden.' This is a nice earth friendly way to avoid insects and other pests in your garden.

FUNGUS: In dryer climes such as Northern Nevada I never had a problem with fungus on beans. However, in a recent garden in Southeastern North Carolina I noticed several leaves had fungus discoloration. I used the same method to get rid of it as I do on tomatoes. I put a pint of water in a spray bottle, add a tablespoon of Baking Soda, shake well, and spray it on the affected leaves. The fungus goes right away.

WORMS: The first sign of these is holes in the leaves. I suggest a thin dusting with Sevin Dust. Stops ‘em in their tracks and doesn’t harm the plant. However, once they start to bloom I would not put Sevin on the leaves. You will kill the little bees and other insects trying to pollinate the blossoms.

BIRDS: In Reno I had a problem with crows eating my young bean plants just as soon as they popped out of the ground. I finally stuck a couple of three feet long sticks in the ground, placed strings above the ground connecting the two sticks. Then using more twine I hung three used CDs from the upper string. The wind spins the CDs, they flash sunlight and scare the crows away.

STORING EXCESS; Green beans may be canned or frozen. Before freezing them I wash them well and then scald them for maybe five seconds in boiling hot water. I've never tried to dehydrate these but would love to hear from someone who has.

RECIPES FROM YOUR GARDEN: Click on the recipe below using the above as an ingredient and it will pop up for you.
Green Bean Casserole
Vegetable Soup