Limp green beens

[krzybo]

Our green beans are limp right off the bush. What would cause this? We have had dry weather for a couple of weeks. The bushes look great the beans are just limp and not snappy. They are not too big. Any ideas?

 

[lesa]

Are they really developed and ready for harvest? An immature bean can be kind of limp looking....If the plants don't look wilted from the heat and dryness, I doubt the beans would.

 

[krzybo]

Yes, they are ready for harvest. They look great, just spongy and limp. Some of them snap but most are just limp. I can't think of anything other than dry weather. The bushes do not have any bugs on them and they look good.

 

[catjac1975]

Try a good watering-they will probably snap back.

 

[digitS']

Commercial outfits use something called "hydrocooling" for immediate processing of all sorts of veggies.

Here's something on it from North Carolina State University (click).

The veggie may go from outdoor temperature to 42F very quickly. Your tap water may be 55 or something like that. You can add ice cubes, I suppose.

Getting beans wet can be problematic for storage, however. It would be best to get the water off them and allow them to dry inside a fridge before dropping them in a plastic bag. Of course, they can go right back to being limp in the fridge if left too long . . .

Steve

 

[hoodat]

If your weather is hot and the humidity low a plant can find itself unable to take up water fast enough to keep up with eveaporation from its' leaves. They may get limp in the heat and recover at night. Try checking them as soon as it is light enough to see in the morning. You may find they have their "snap' back.