Beans & Peas

General Information:
Green beans & peas are a popular, warm season, home-grow crop.  Growing best in loose deeply dug  soil with plenty of compost, full sunlight, and adequate moisture.  Beans & peas come in many types & varieties. Beans & peas will not produce well in a dry soil. They require constant even moisture especially pole beans during the first 30 days of growth.  If not, the beans will be tough and stringy — if they produce at all. Pole beans produce best when trellised. I prefer using Bamboo cane apposed to wire or fencing. The metal trellis' gets to hot in the sun, and blister the vines somewhat. Poles allow much easier harvesting as well.  Bush beans & most peas are less labor intensive, but produce  less.  It is back-breaking chore to harvest bush types in my opinion.  Many gardeners like bush beans, but I'm not one of them.  Beans harvested on bush types are almost always muddy hanging so close to the soil. I have found them to be much less productive as well. Their flavor is comparable to their pole cousins.

Soil Preparation:
For best results incorporate moderate amounts of compost or well rotted manure deeply dug into the soil.  Beware of fresh manure as it may contain seeds, & high concentrations of urine & salts.  Since Beans and peas are  shallow rooted plant it is very sensitive to moisture fluctuations.  Without adequate moisture the shallow roots  cannot deliver the require nutrients to produce properly.  Position rows for proper exposure to sunlight.  All my beds are positioned slightly east/north-east by west/south-west. Rake to break up & remove debris from the soil. Work the soil only when it is dry enough not to stick to garden tools. Form a 36" wide bed the length of your choice. Using a garden hoe form a shallow trench in the center of the 36" wide bed about 4" deep. Do not allow the trench between the 2 rows too extend beyond the end of the beds as this trench will hold water later.  The 2 rows in the 36" wide bed should be about 12" to 16" apart.

Fertilization:
Perform a complete soil analysis to determine fertilization needs.  Soil sample kits including sample bag and instructions can be  obtained from your local county Agricultural extension service office free of charge. However, the fee for the actual soil analysis is usually about $15.00. 

Use 6-24-24  according the manufacturers instruction.  About 2  lbs. per 100 square feet. Mix the fertilizer in about 4" deep 1 week before sowing seed. High Nitrogen fertilizers should be avoided on Beans and Peas.

Planting & Growing:
Sow beans & peas in spring after all danger of frost has passed. For a fall crop sow 12 weeks before the first frost. I always recommend treating the seed with inoculants containing nitrogen-gathering bacteria.  Consult your local gardening retailer for this product. A small package will treat up to 5 lbs. of seeds. This will insure larger yields of better quality.  This procedure is only required once every five years as it remains in the soil. Wet & drain the seeds & place  them with  the contents of one small package of inoculant into a  container  & mix , allow to stand 1 hour before sowing.    Use about ¼ lbs. of seed for a single 100 ft. row.  Sow 2 rows per 36"  wide bed for beans & peas on each side of the bed described above.  Sow the seed about 2" apart and 1" deep.  The fastest way to plant beans by hand  is to lay the seeds on top of the soil the full length of the bed.  Come back and push the seed into the soil to the depth of the first joint of your index finger  or thumb, using your other hand to cover the seed as you move down the row.  Water the bed gently without washing the seed out of the soil.  Germination should occur within a week.  Keep the soil moist by lightly watering until the beans emerge.  Watering  daily will help prevent the soil from crusting over allowing the seed to push through the surface easier. After the bean has germinated  water deeply once a week unless the soil dries below 1½ inches deep. Otherwise water more frequently to retain adequate moisture.  Thin the seedling to 3" and build your trellis within a week. When the seedling reaches 5"  pull up an inch of loose soil from between the rows against the seedling to firmly support them in the soil forming shallow inside trenches to hold water. Then  cover the entire 36" wide bed   & the shallow trenches with 2" to 3" of leaves or straw. This will conserve moisture, attract worms, and reduce the growth of weeds in the beds. Any weeds that do germinate are easily removed by hand or light cultivation.   Once the vines are established, weeds should not be a problem, they will not receive enough sunlight to grow.  Build your trellis at this time if planting pole beans.  If you use Bamboo cane to build your trellises build them like the picture at the top of this page. Use metal T posts for the upright supports, available at any building supply. Placing a center support horizontally and leaning the vertical 7 foot pole at a angle. Cut a point on the large ends of the cane and push into the soil along the inside edge of the rows.  Do not damage the roots of the beans. Then fasten the vertical pole with twist ties, tie wraps or strapping tape.   When it is time to water your beans, simply apply a moderate amount of water into the trench between the row you formed earlier.  Do not apply water too quickly as you may wash out  soil holding the water. The water will slowly soak deeply onto the root zone.  Using this method, your plants will always have adequate moisture to perform well.

Vine Training Pole Beans:
For the most part pole beans will find the trellis, and start winding up the trellis on there on. However some will wonder about unable to find the poles or trellis. In this event you will need to help them a bit. Simply wind the vine in a counter clock  direction up the poles or trellis.  It may be necessary to string the wandering vines behind one that is rapped around the trellis to hold it in place. Within 24 hours it should be growing up the trellis properly. If you don't do this you will be bent over picking the pods like I warned you about earlier with bush beans.

Care during the growing season:
The roots of beans are  shallow, near the surface. When cultivating or pulling weed  do not dig too deeply or root damage will result. For best production side dress the row with ½ cup of 10-20-10 fertilizer  per 10 ft. of row when the first sign of blooming occurs.  If you prefer the organic method give them a moderate drink of compost, manure tea or fish emulsion.  (see our Composting page). Inspect your vine often for insect such as Aphids  Spider mites & worms. Consult your local county extension  service office for recommended treatment. I us a mixture of 1 tablespoon of dish soap  in 1 gallon of water  or pepper garlic & pepper spray, sprayed with a pump up sprayer.  (see our  Misc. page )  If pests  really get bad, more drastic measures may be necessary.  If so, contact you local Agricultural extension service office for specific treatment.

 

 
Harvesting:
Green beans are ready to pick when they are about the size and length of a pencil. Anything larger than this will tend to be tough and/or stringy.  Pods should be firm and full, free of defects. Remove the pod carefully to avoid damaging the vines. Hold the vine above the pod and pull off. With a little practice you can learn to do it with one hand. By grasping the vine between your thumb and index finger  & and the pod between your palm your remaining fingers, pulling against the vine & pod. with the your thumb and index finger. Practice makes perfect!

Storage:
Wash the pods in running water  cold water. Inspect you beans for insects and small worms. Then  snap or cut off the very ends off the pods. Place a large pot of water on the stove ½ filled with water and bring to a hard boil.  Add 1 tablespoon of salt to the boiling water. Carefully pour only enough beans into the water that can be covered with the boiling water . Careful not  to allow it to overflow. Allow the bean to came back to a complete boil  for 12 minutes. After 12 minutes carefully pour the contents onto a colander in the sink and drain quickly. Then pour the contents into a large container ½ full of water and ice to rapidly cool the cooking beans as quickly as possible.  When cool, place the beans in a zip lock freezer bag and seal  Removing as much air as possible from the freezer bag. Mark and  date the bag and place in freezer. Frozen beans will last for years if you can keep from eating them. There  is nothing like fresh beans in the dead of winter.

If this is all as clear as mud to you,   e-mail  me for clarification.