Pole Beans Not Flowering

[Carol Dee]

Still waiting and watching here. The plants that survived insects (JB) and rabbits & deer are blooming. no sign of beans. But it has cooled and we have had a few 10th of an inch of rain Maybe we will get something yet ... I just feel so impatient.

 

[897tgigvib]

Beans' wild ancestors, Phaseolus vulgaris, were edge of subtropical forest plants. For the most part, those are still the conditions they thrive in.

When it is real hot for weeks on end, afternoon shade will help them. I also sometimes overhead water them when it is real hot. Yes, that can invite disease if you are not careful.

I've been getting mostly huge crops of dry beans, loading all my paper plates up everyday, and putting them into cans the next.

Each variety is really different than the other, and even sometimes, one accession or selection is different than another of the same variety. My Tierra Hutterites are determinate 5 foot poles, but my old original Hutterites are medium bush.

There are some varieties that tolerate more extreme conditions than others. DOW PURPLE POD wins the award as the most vigorous bean among the over 100 varieties I have grown. They really do sprout in cooler soil and can be planted earlier. They produce until hard frost, are entirely indeterminate, and I've never seen a sick one.

For those who have conditions too hot for regular beans but still want snap beans, all is not lost. Try the Dow Purple Pod. Another option is to try growing a Vigna unguiculata such as yard long. Baker Creek seed has a bunch of asian Vignas similar to Yard Long called noodle beans. These are from places like Thailand where it gets melting hot.

Vignas and other Cowpeas are real fun to grow! They do like it hot. They set pods at the top that droop down in pairs after making real pretty flowers that look like floral pea flowers, while the leaves look like regular beans or maybe more like lima bean leaves. Try growing a few if you never have before. Oh. Their productivity will surprise you. For dry beans, their flavor is more earthy. Try adding some to your chile.