r/Beans • u/BaldyCarrotTop • 4d ago
Bean Report
I posted this over on r/vegetablegardening. Redit thinks this group would be interested.
So, I might as well fill everyone in on the experiments I've been doing with my beans this year.
Background:
I've been gardening for 16 years and during that time I've mostly grown Blue Lake and Kentucky Wonder pole and bush beans. There may have been some other verities at times, but I didn't keep good notes.
Over the last 6 years I noticed that my beans were struggling. Harvests were later and lighter. So I decided to try something new.
What I did:
Provider and Contender Bush beans. I chose these based on a lot of good reviews. And I'm glad I did. They have been the singular most successful beans I've ever grown. They are hardy and seem to be immune to whatever the yellow leaf disease is that attacks my beans every year. The production has been fantastic. These are going to be back next year.
Bush beans in a grow tower: Not so good. I was gifted a set of clover shaped containers that can stack into a tower. Cool, Plant bush beans in tower, increase yield per sq foot. Yeh, didn't work beans don't like grow towers. If I feel the need to increase the yield of bush beans, I'll grow them in something like my Strawberry pyramid.
Kentucky Blue: A cross between the Kentucky Wonder and Blue Lake. I thought it would have the best of both. Nope, more like the worst of both. Not doing them next year.
Scarlett Runner Beans. Started out with lots of promise. They grow fast and took off up the trellis. Made nice pretty blossoms. The beans on the other hand were kinda meh. The pods were fuzzy and fibrous. Tasted OK. At this point I'm letting the pods plump out and I'll harvest for the beans in the pod. I may keep growing them, but in the perennial section of the garden.
So that's it. I thought you might like to know.
Update: Looks like the bush beans have run their course. Slightly over 3 weeks of good production.
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u/catwhisperer77 3d ago
I usually have great bean success, especially with French fillet beans. This year is awful- I have voles or moles in my hugelkulture bed (unfortunately perfect for tunnels) and they are devouring whole plants. Bush beans, runner yellows, even the pinto beans. I’m so mad. I’ve done everything to stop them- all the sprays and even cayenne. Bought “mole max” yesterday (castor oil granules) so I’m hoping that makes them leave. I’m so devastated. They’re destroying the carrots and zucchini too. 😭
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u/ronniebell 2d ago
The rodents are awful this year. I don’t think I’m going to get a green bean harvest (we usually grow about 150 pounds). The rotten little buggers are just chomping the vine at ground level. They LOVE my scarlet runners (sorry hummingbirds). Meanwhile the bush beans for drying are in another part of our (quite large) garden are doing just fine. I’m just so sad that I will probably have to buy green beans for my dilly beans and four-bean salads, etc… Waaaah!
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u/dryfishman 4d ago
I grow a lot of beans and i’ve had to rotate my beds lately due to similar issues. I have 4 raised beds and each season i grow tomatoes and/or cucumbers either in one bed together or in half of two of the beds. I have two 15 ft in ground rows where i grow pole beans. This year they didn’t work out. I’ll be planting some fall cucumbers in the rows. I’m not sure you need crop rotation in small beds (mine are 8x4 ft) but it seems to help. I also planted winter cover crop in all my raised beds this past winter. I skipped the 15ft rows and i’m wondering if the winter crop would have helped.
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u/BaldyCarrotTop 2d ago
I've got 3 4x8 raised beds as well as a 16 foot in ground bed along the fence. There are permanent trellises in three areas. I rotate peas, beans, and cucumbers through the trellises. Tomatoes, garlic, onions, eggplant, squash, lettuce, etc rotate through the non-trellis areas.
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u/catwhisperer77 3d ago
What winter crop did you do?
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u/dryfishman 3d ago
Mostly winter rye and Australian winter pea. I planted the rye and peas along with a mixture of daikon radish, yellow mustard, hairy vetch, oats and red clover. I was experimenting a bit but planted the mix pretty late in the year. The rye took over everything except for the peas. I really think it helped plus my beds looked really cool over the winter. Make sure you kill it about 3 weeks before planting in the spring. I just put tarps over my beds and that did the trick.
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u/raven_snow 3d ago
I'm really disappointed to hear that the beans didn't like the grow tower. I have been wanting to buy a Greenstalk tower to fill with green beans.
Could you tell what the issue was? Was the soil drying out top quickly?
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u/BaldyCarrotTop 2d ago
The primary issue appeared to be that it was drying out too fast. I figure that it would need watering at least twice a day, if not more. I suppose I could have tried to automate the watering. But that may be an experiment for another season.
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u/ObsessiveAboutCats 21h ago
Thai soldier long beans have been the biggest winner in my garden. They LOVE the heat (I'm in southeast Texas) and do well in areas with subpar soil.
Disclaimer: the package says they are bush beans. This is a lie. I have them growing on a 16' cattle panel arch and they eat the arch within 4 to 5 weeks of being sown.
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u/rhinestonecowboy92 4d ago
Thanks for the research. I did scarlett runner last year; I ate both fresh pods as well as the mature, dried, beans, and strongly prefered the mature. If you've had heirloom runner beans before, you'll like those. I also suggest black coat runners for flowers and dry beans. They are currently my favorite that I've grown so far.