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No problem for me, TS, I haven't had any beans worth talking about this year!
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Whatever the research says (and none of it is specific to a home gardener), I will continue to believe that there is a modicum of residual nitrogen left in the roots of the beans - enough to warrant leaving them in situ. Its also a darn side easier - and that alone is a good enough argument for me.Comment
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I leave them in the soil too, as they rot down they leave a tunnel, which aerates the soil
The foliage & vines are chopped up and left on the soil as a mulch, the pods are put in the compost heap. Nothing's wastedAll gardeners know better than other gardeners." -- Chinese Proverb.Comment
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Mine are pretty much finished too. Brought a load home from the allotment today to have with our cheeky midweek pork roast, but I barely coated the bottom of the saucepan with tender ones as they mostly seemed way too tough. Had to supplement from the freezer with French beans we've been storing. On the plus side, got some lovely fat seeds for growing next year which are now in paper pouches in the shed.Are y'oroight booy?Comment
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I do what TS does, mainly because when the beans have finished (and it's getting towards that time now), the daleks are full. I just take the poles out, chop the foliage with shears and leave them on the ground to rot down.Granny on the Game in SheffieldComment
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i am growing the scarlet emperor runner beans.. they are around 8 to 12 inches long, but the problem i have is that the beans inside dont seem to be fattening up ? yet the pods look as if they are ready to harvest..
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I've been picking my scarlet emperor when they're around 5 or 6 inch long I only leave the beans to fatten up towards the end of the season to use for soups and as seed beans for next year.Originally posted by muslimgrower View PostLocation....East Midlands.Comment
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As Bren says ^^^^^, I'd have eaten yours by now! You don't really want to see a lumpy bean inside the pods when you pick them as that means they're getting tough.Comment
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I'm in Rochester in sunny Kent!
Thank you for your advice.DottyRComment
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thanks.
the beans are tiny though.. even though the pod is over 8 inches long!?Comment
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With runner beans, you eat the pods, rather than the bean inside! Like mangetout, in a way. The more I think about it, the more ridiculous it becomes to call the cooked version "beans".Comment
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november seems very late to keep harvesting beans ....Originally posted by arpoet View Post
what variety are yours? and when did you sow them?Comment
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that all depends on the variety.Originally posted by muslimgrower View Post
Even in the mature pod (and I'm guessing yours are very immature), some have tiny seeds, some have large seeds, some pods are short, others are long ...All gardeners know better than other gardeners." -- Chinese Proverb.Comment
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My runners looked to be finished roughly when this thread was started- score one for laziness though, they're suddenly putting out new growth and flower buds again!Comment
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my runner bean seeds are saved from year to year so have not bought any for years. I seem to think the last lot i paid for were scarlet emperor and emorma from Netto at 19p per packet and that was about 5 years ago, but some i have been growing for years from saved seeds for about 10 years.Originally posted by Farmer_Gyles View Post
Today i went out and tidied up some of the foliage and nick off the unwanted bits. it looks like i will picking again tomorrow and should get about 4 lbs.
There are still flowers on and tiny beens setting so i should keep going for a few weeks yet until we have a big frost that blacken the leaves.
I always leave some pods to fill out just for seeds and dont pick em until november.
Also i always grow in the same spot with the whole length of the row facing south and the high fence to the north side.
Lots of home made compost, rotted hos muck and shreeded paper dug into the trench in the spring.
Never fails.
RogerComment
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