Growing Beans in Your Vegetable Garden

Beans require very little space for maximum growth and are adapted to a wide range of soils Beans are classified as bush type or pole type. The bush type grow as the name indicates, into a small compact plant while pole beans have a climbing or twining characteristic. Pole beans require a trellis, teepee, fence or other structure to climb on. Generally, you get production over a longer period of time with pole beans.

Plant bush beans in two rows down the top of raised beds, one row on each side of the bed. Plant seeds one inch deep, spacing seeds out to two inches apart. Thin plants to four or five inches. Pole beans are planted one row per bed- thin plants six to eight inches apart in the row. Snap or string beans are planted for "green beans." Stringless varieties are very popular. Try Tendercrop, Topcrop and Bush Blue Lake varieties for green beans. Wax bush beans are also available which are yellow in color. Try Surecrop Wax, Golden Wax or Pencil Pod Wax varieties. Pole type beans include Kentucky Wonder and Blue Lake varieties.

There are some bush and pole beans that are purple in color, but when boiled for two or three minutes they turn a dark green color. Of course, there are many other varieties besides the traditional snap beans. Try your luck at raising beans to dry. Dry beans are among the oldest of food. Prehistoric man found they were good keepers, easy to transport and easy to prepare. Dry beans are especially popular today because they keep the food budget balanced and still offer high nutrition.

Pinto beans are planted in the garden and allowed to mature. They should be harvested before the dry pod shatters. Individual pods can be picked and dried or the entire plant can be cut just before the bottom pods shatter. The plants are dried thrashed and the beans stored for later use. The Aztec bean has become increasingly popular. Seeds of the Aztec bean were reportedly found in clay pottery left behind by Indians in Northern New Mexico some five centuries ago. In 1926, during the excavation of an old Indian ruin, the beans were found. They were planted and some of the beans germinated. The seeds have reportedly been handed down from family to family. Several growers provide small quantities of the beans for sale.

The bean is white and rather large. In cooking the beans are soaked overnight and then cooked. The beans increase four times their original size while cooking with each bean being about bite size. Pollination seems to be a problem when growing Aztec beans for the first time. It has been said that a special kind of insect pollinates or assists in pollinating the bean. After the first year of growing in a new area, the pollination seems to improve. The bean is a vigorous climber and can easily climb eight foot poles. Each plant can produce over one-half pound of dry beans in ideal growing conditions.

Other beans to consider include vegetable or edible soybeans. Mature dry soybeans are excellent for winter use and for making sprouts. Fava beans or broadbeans (Horsebeans) are not true beans, but related to vetch. The green fava beans are used as green shell beans much like limas. Some people in Mediterranean descent have a genetic trait that causes a severe allergic reaction to Fava beans. The Garbanzo or chick pea is neither a bean or a pea, but it usually listed as a bean. The beans are dried and cooked to add a chestnut-like flavor to green salads or mixed bean salad.

Not to be overlooked are the Lima beans which come in both bush and pole type, and can be used for succotash. There is a bean for almost every taste. Experiment with various types for further enjoyment in raising a family vegetable garden.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bean

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/ho-175.pdf