2017 Little Easy Bean Network – Everything Beans, Post It Here & Join The Fun

[Blue-Jay]

Ninnymary,

Sounds like you can grow at least one variety. I will send you about 8 seeds of a variety you chose next year.

 

[journey11]

Nicely done!! I envy your dark, loose soil!

 

[baymule]

@Bluejay77 your gardens are looking so nice! Love the deer fence! Sadly, I don't know if my beans will recover from the bunny attack. My okra seems to be toast too. Pictures are on page 9 in case you missed them.

 

[reedy]

I'm happy to report that Refugee is a very tasty green bean!! My quest for beans that I neither have to stoop over to pick or build a giant trellis for is in sight. They remind me flavor wise very much of some of my old favorites, greasy beans. Haven't tried Crystal Wax or Burgundy Bolitas as I'm letting the first of them go to seed.

Refugee have topped the 3' trellis but not enough to flop back down too much, I'll give them a 4' to 5' support next year. Also next year I'll try inter-planting with some of my other wonderful tasting but giant vined beans to see if I can get some tamer version of ones like Ohio pole.

That's how I make my crosses, plant the two varieties one then the other and grow out the results. Bifocals, stubby fat fingers and lack of patience prevent me from using the more controlled method of crossing.

Also looking forward to growing out and trialing more of the short half-runner and semi-runners next year.

 

[Blue-Jay]

@reedy,

I had wondered if Refugee was really any good as a green snap bean. Your information is nice to know. Actually Refugee was one of the most popular green beans in the 19th century going back to about 1822 and it was very popular and widely grown right into the early part of the 20th century.

 

[Blue-Jay]

@baymule

Thanks for the compliments on the appearance of my gardens. I hope later I can get some nice photos and show everyone how mulching with grass clippings looks and does such a nice job of keep down weeds. Really very effective when the clippings are used heavy enough.

 

[Pulsegleaner]

Quick question

A lot of my beans have ended up podding way earlier than expected, and so on plants way shorter than expected (as in , to the point where those pods (which are still only half grown) are dangerously close to ground level. What happens when they hit it? Will they just bend out or stop growing longer, or do I have to worry about them actually eventually snapping in half from the pressure? I know the stems will bend up a little, but if the pods are only like half size at the moment they'd have to be almost parallel to the plant to cover the difference, and that would seem to be asking for a snap off as well. I'd be tempted to dig little troughs under the pods to give them more room, but that would probably cut through most of the plants roots.

 

[reedy]

@Pulsegleaner ,are you talking about bush beans? I don't think they will stop growing or break but pods on the ground is one of the reasons I grow mostly pole beans.

Even if the stems of bush are nice and strong and the pods are held up nice and high it still seems like a storm always comes along and knocks them down and covers them with mud. Or they just get so heavy they fall over and pods in contact with the ground or splashed with mud often rot, especially by time they have dried down for dry beans or seed. They are also a pain to clean up to eat or can for green beans.

If you are having this issue with pole beans I haven't a clue what the problem could be.

 

[reedy]

@Bluejay77 , beautiful soil and fences in your gardens. Lots of good sun exposure too, I'm jealous. Do you have to put chicken wire or something at the bottom to guard against rabbits or are they not a problem in your area? When I lived in town I grew beans and stuff just where ever I felt like it around the yard but now everything has to be heavily defended against various critters.

 

[Pulsegleaner]

@Pulsegleaner ,are you talking about bush beans? I don't think they will stop growing or break but pods on the ground is one of the reasons I grow mostly pole beans.

Even if the stems of bush are nice and strong and the pods are held up nice and high it still seems like a storm always comes along and knocks them down and covers them with mud. Or they just get so heavy they fall over and pods in contact with the ground or splashed with mud often rot, especially by time they have dried down for dry beans or seed. They are also a pain to clean up to eat or can for green beans.

If you are having this issue with pole beans I haven't a clue what the problem could be.

See, my problem is that I am growing out beans of unknown antecedents, so I NEVER have any clue whether they are bush or pole until they actually GROW (and quite a lot of the time, it seems the same beans will switch between one and another through the season or over generations.)

The ones of concern might be best described as "sprout beans". They MIGHT become pole as the season progresses (most of the others have developed runners) but as of yet they are still VERY short little plants. See photo below (I took this to show flowers for another thread, so the perspective isn't perfect but you should still get an idea. And while they have put on flowers and pods, they haven't really put on any additional height)

And before you start complaining about overcrowding, the other pots have the same level, and they are twining fine.