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How to Grow and Care for Garden Beans

Green BeansBush Green Beans

Growing beans in your home garden provides you with tender young pods suitable for eating right from the vine or for cooking and serving as a side dish. These easy-to-grow vegetables germinate quickly in warm soil and produce a crop of fresh beans by early summer.
 
Location: Beans are sun-loving plants that prefer 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight a day. In hot dry areas, some shade at midday is preferred, as excessive heat may cause blossom or pod drop. In northern climates, beans thrive in all day sun.

Soil: Beans prefer rich well-drained soil. Amend with well-rotted manure or compost before planting working the organic matter into the top six inches of soil. This improves the texture of the soil, promoting good drainage and improving aeration   necessary for healthy growth.

Fertilizer: Apply 5-10-10 fertilizer, following the recommended application rate on the container, in the spring before planting. Work the fertilizer into the soil with a garden hoe, as contact with seeds or young roots will damage the plants.

Planting: Sow bean seeds in the spring once all danger of frost has passed in your area and soil temperatures are at least 50 degrees F. Seeds planted in soil below 50 degrees will likely rot in the soil before germinating. Plant seeds to a depth of one inch, spaced two to four inches apart. Allow 24 to 36 inches between rows for ease of cultivation and harvesting.

Weed Control: Mulch with organic material such as grass clippings or straw to control weeds, if preferred. Otherwise, hand pull or hoe weeds to keep them under control.

Watering: Water beans deeply once or twice a week or whenever it the soil feels dry one inch below the surface. Use special care to keep soil evenly moist from the time the first buds appear until beans reach maturity. A lack of water at this time reduces overall production and the quality of the beans.

Harvesting: Pick beans when they are long and slender, before the beans fill out inside the pods.

Green, purple and wax beans mature at approximately the same time - depending on the specific cultivar - while pole beans mature several weeks later. Bush beans grow to heights of 12 to 24 inches and do not require a trellis or fence. Pole beans, however, can be trained to twine a "pole," grown on a trellis or used to create a teepee. Whichever you choose to grow, basic cultivation is the same.




Copyright © 2014 Nannette Richford



  • Home
  • Garden Thyme Blog
  • Themes
    • Butterfly Gardens
    • Moon Gardens
    • Sensory Gardens
    • All About Fairies
  • Flowers
    • Annual Flowers >
      • Alyssum
      • Cosmos
      • Geraniums
      • Marigolds
      • Morning Glories
      • Nasturtiums
      • Petunias >
        • Reviving Petunias
      • Snapdragons
      • Sunflowers
      • Sweet Peas
      • Zinnias
    • Perennial Flowers >
      • Golden Glow (Rudbeckia laciniata ‘Hortensia’)
      • Lupines
      • Purple Coneflower (Echinacea Purpurea)
    • Maine Wildflowers
  • Veggies
    • Warm Season Vegetables >
      • About Beans >
        • Growing Beans
        • Growing Pole Beans
        • How to Make a Teepee Trellis
      • About Corn >
        • Growing Corn
        • What is Baby Corn, anyway?
        • Can you grow corn in containers?
      • Cucumbers >
        • Grow a cucumber in a bottle
        • Growing Pickling Cucumbers
        • Growing cucamelons (Mexican Gherkin)
        • Why do cucumbers blossom but fail to set fruit?
        • Trellising Cucumbers
        • Making Cucumber Relish
        • Powdery Mildew on Cucumbers
      • Melons
      • Peppers >
        • Growing Peppers
      • Squash >
        • Growing Zucchini
        • Spaghetti Squash
      • Tomatoes >
        • How to Harden Off Tomato Plants
        • How (and when) to Prune Tomatoes
        • Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salt) for Tomatoes
        • Blossom End Rot in Tomatoes
        • Growing Cherry Tomatoes in Hanging Baskets
        • 4 Best Tomatoes for Short Seasons - Early Tomatoes
        • 5 Early Maturing Tomatoes for Short Season Gardening
        • How to Ripen Green Tomatoes
        • How to Make Sun-Dried Tomatoes at Home
        • How to Grow a Pomato Plant
    • Cool Season Vegetables >
      • Cole Crops
      • Greens >
        • How to Grow Spinach
        • How to Grow Malabar Spinach
        • How to Grow Swiss Chard
        • Harvesting and Cooking Beet Greens
        • How to Grow Microgreens
      • Onions & Garlic >
        • How to Grow Garlic
        • How to Grow Onions
      • Peas >
        • Growing Garden (shelling) Peas
        • Growing Sugar Snap Peas
      • Potatoes >
        • How to Grow Potatoes in Containers
        • How to Grow Potatoes in Hay Bales
      • Root Crops >
        • Growing Beets
        • How to Grow Carrots
        • Turnips vs Rutabagas
  • Herbs
    • Growing Basil
    • Growing Chives
    • Growing Lavender
    • Herbal Tea Garden
    • How to Grow a Culinary Herb Garden
    • How to Grow Herbs in Sponges
    • Colonial Herb Garden - Classroom Project
    • Herbed Butter
    • Making Herbed Oils
  • Gardening Basics
    • Seed Starting Basics
    • Grafting Basics
    • Soil >
      • Starting a New Garden
      • How to Prepare Soil
      • How to Test Soil Drainage
      • What Type of Soil Do You Have
      • Soil Mix Recipe for Containers
      • How to Make Compost Tea
      • How to Use Mulch
  • Garden Pests
    • How to Control Japanese Beetles
    • How to Control Blister Beetles
    • How to Get Rid of Colorado Potato Beetles
  • Birds
    • Hummingbirds >
      • DIY Hummingbird Feeders from Recycled Bottles
      • Annuals for Hummingbird Gardens
      • Perennials for Hummingbird Gardens
    • About Birdseed
    • Choosing a Birdfeeder
  • Fiddleheads and Fairies
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • How to Marinate Roasted Vegetables