2019 Little Easy Bean Network - Come And Reawaken The Thrill Of Discovery

[Artorius]

This is a side effect of my Stoltzfus String crossed seeds. Now I have original beans from Tim Mountz. I swaped seeds of Russian tomatoes.

Strange thing. People in Canada and the United States receive my priority shipments after equal four weeks, although they are sent from Poland the second day after posting. I don't know why this happens.

 

[flowerbug]

Ok, back to the newbie, here!!! I need advice. Last year I grew, I think, Kentucky Wonder and some kind of purple bean. They both tried to sprawl on the ground and it was very hard to harvest. I already have scarlett runner beans, but I am trying them at DD's house, some 10 miles away, so that I might be able to harvest pods and seeds without cross pollination. Can you recommend other types of runner beans? AND, do I have to train them to climb, or will they do it on their own? I am planting beans this year along an east facing, but very sunny old cattle fencline, by the street. Thanks!!!

i'm not a runner bean expert, but i'm pretty sure they climb on their own as i don't recall having to do much training to get them up the fence. as for varieties, i only have the one scarlet runner beans and if you can start them earlier in larger pots you can transplant them out and gain a few weeks extra time on their growing season before the frosts take them out.

 

[Artorius]

This year, I will sow runner beans and limas in pots on April 15. I will transplant them after May 15. After this date, ground frosts occur in Poland once every few years. The plants are not large yet, so I can easily cover them.

 

[Zeedman]

I like to read new articles about starting plants that I have started before, but this article threw me:

Scarlet Runner Beans - KidsGardening

Sometimes simply called “scarlet runners,” these plants have so many diverse benefits that they should be on must-have plant lists at every school, community, and home garden that has room for the vigorous vines!

kidsgardening.org

"Dig up the tuberous roots for replanting. Similar to dahlias, you can dig up the roots and store them in damp sand in a place that stays cool but not freezing. The plants will re-grow quickly once the roots are replanted in spring. "
Is this normal for beans?!?!?

As already mentioned, runner beans (P. coccineus) can form tubers - common beans do not. I've only noticed the tubers in one variety, though, Aeron Purple Star.

Those tubers are from 2016. I tried to over-winter them, but our winters are too long, and none of them survived until Spring. Over-wintering tubers is really unnecessary, since the plants grow so rapidly from seed... but it would be a good tool to clean up crossed varieties.

Ok, back to the newbie, here!!! I need advice. Last year I grew, I think, Kentucky Wonder and some kind of purple bean. They both tried to sprawl on the ground and it was very hard to harvest. I already have scarlett runner beans, but I am trying them at DD's house, some 10 miles away, so that I might be able to harvest pods and seeds without cross pollination. Can you recommend other types of runner beans? AND, do I have to train them to climb, or will they do it on their own? I am planting beans this year along an east facing, but very sunny old cattle fencline, by the street. Thanks!!!

Pole beans sometimes need a little guidance getting started, but should mostly climb on their own after that. Some of the later side runners might run on the ground, you can either train them, or cut them off (which does not reduce yield). True runner beans are strong clmbers, and will seldom crawl on the ground if support is within reach. Runner beans will not cross with common beans, but they can cross with other runner beans grown within the bee local foraging range... which can be a mile or more. I usually grow two varieties per year, in locations 6 miles apart. The jury is still out, IMO, on whether hummingbirds can transfer pollen; but I have seen no evidence of that yet.

If you are growing runner beans for their attractive flowers, or to attract hummingbirds, there are numerous varieties with red flowers, including Scarlet Runner, Insuk's Wang Kong, and Aeron Purple Star. There are also numerous white flowered & white seeded varieties, as well as red & white bi-color (Tucomares Chocolate or Painted lady), or pink (Apricot or Sunset). The pods of any runner bean are edible as snaps when young & very similar in flavor; but the best varieties for pods are those bred in the U.K. for that purpose, if you can find them.

While runner beans will flower in hot weather, the flowers will usually drop unfertilized; pod set will seldom occur until cool temperatures arrive. For me, a cool snap usually comes for a couple days in August, at which time hundreds of blossoms might set. In warmer Southern climates, it may be difficult to get pods to set. It may be necessary to start the plants early, in hopes of getting pods to set before hot weather arrives. I've had some success getting flowers to set on hot days, by spraying the plants with cool water a couple times in the afternoon.

 

[flowerbug]

As already mentioned, runner beans (P. coccineus) can form tubers - common beans do not. I've only noticed the tubers in one variety, though, Aeron Purple Star.
View attachment 34212
Those tubers are from 2016. I tried to over-winter them, but our winters are too long, and none of them survived until Spring. Over-wintering tubers is really unnecessary, since the plants grow so rapidly from seed... but it would be a good tool to clean up crossed varieties.
...
While runner beans will flower in hot weather, the flowers will usually drop unfertilized; pod set will seldom occur until cool temperatures arrive. For me, a cool snap usually comes for a couple days in August, at which time hundreds of blossoms might set. In warmer Southern climates, it may be difficult to get pods to set. It may be necessary to start the plants early, in hopes of getting pods to set before hot weather arrives. I've had some success getting flowers to set on hot days, by spraying the plants with cool water a couple times in the afternoon.

i think the tubers might be edible.

and yes, i've done that trick for getting tomatoes to set fruits in hotter weather. it plays havoc with the leaves though if you have any diseases waiting for those damp leaves.

 

[Spork]

Oh yes KP, Kutasi Princess. @Spork, I hope you have great success with Kutasi Princess this coming growing season. I would imagine that by early April you might have them planted. By July you will have new seed of them. It will be neat to see the new seed. Hope you post photos of the progress of your grow out and new seed.

I'll definitely keep you updated. Speaking of the KP seeds, I bought some from Marina Mitrovic in Georgia. She sent me a gift of 10 "coffie" been seeds. Russ, she said that she got them from you. What can you tell me about them?

 

[Blue-Jay]

I'll definitely keep you updated. Speaking of the KP seeds, I bought some from Marina Mitrovic in Georgia. She sent me a gift of 10 "coffie" been seeds. Russ, she said that she got them from you. What can you tell me about them?

Coffee beans must be the variety that I know as Graines De Cafe. Very productive pole dry bean. Rounded brown seeds that are glossy. They almost look like pieces of chocolate candy. I got them from a woman in Liebenfels, Austria. Very well worth growing.

I'm curious what it cost you to get them from her?

 

[Spork]

Coffee beans must be the variety that I know as Graines De Cafe. Very productive pole dry bean. Rounded brown seeds that are glossy. They almost look like pieces of chocolate candy. I got them from a woman in Liebenfels, Austria. Very well worth growing.

I'm curious what it cost you to get them from her?

Russ, they were a free gift for buying 200 KP seeds. Have you grown them before? Do you still have seeds? Do you know Marina?

 

[Blue-Jay]

Russ, they were a free gift for buying 200 KP seeds. Have you grown them before? Do you still have seeds? Do you know Marina?

I know Marina only in as much for the orders of beans she has given me for the last 3 or 4 years. She is about to make another order for nearly 20 more varieties. I suspected she has a seed business somewhere in Europe, but I didn't know where. I still have seeds of Graines De Cafe, and grew them again in 2019.

 

[Blue-Jay]

@Spork

Looks like you got 10 seeds of the Graines De Cafe. If you grow all 10 and they produce like they do for me you will probably have about 2 and 1/2 pounds of seed from them.