Green beans inside - do I need to pollinate?

[Bluemchen]

I have dwarf French beans in the greenhouse, as well as some strawberries. Will I need to pollinate the flowers by hand and if so, how do I do it? Presumably the tomatoes and cucumbers I have been growing are self-fertile, as I didn't do anything special to them last year?

Thanks
Bluemchen

[BarleySugar]

French beans pollinate themselves, so don't need any special treatment. The strawbs, it depends on whether any pollinating insects can get in. If not, then the trusty paintbrush should do the trick. With cucumbers, it depends if you grow an indoor variety. These do not need pollinating, and if they do get pollinated, the fruit ends up bitter. Tomatoes usually just need a shake of the stem to stir the pollen around a bit, and are usually OK in a greenhouse I find.

[marathon]

My french beans are doing well in the PT, my cucumbers are from realseeds and need pollinating but I find that I have bees coming into the PT now so I don't see they will be a problem. I have a pantbrush ready just incase though

[Alison]

French beans need no insects to pollinate and will produce bean quite happily, however am not sure why you want to grow them at this time of year in a greenhouse. They take up quite a bit of space and can easily be grown outside.

[marathon]

My french beans are doing well in the PT, my cucumbers are from realseeds and need pollinating but I find that I have bees coming into the PT now so I don't see they will be a problem. I have a pantbrush ready just incase though

I will bne pulling mine up soon once the outside crop takes over. I've been picking beans for a few weeks now. I would say depending on where you live some times it's better to grow in a PT. I would never grow runners in one though as it would be far to hot

[Storming Norman]

This is a good question - can I follow it up with another?

I have a few yard long beans just popping up in the greenhouse - do they need pollinating or does the same apply?

Thanks,

Ann

[King Carrot]

French beans need no insects to pollinate and will produce bean quite happily, however am not sure why you want to grow them at this time of year in a greenhouse. They take up quite a bit of space and can easily be grown outside.

I grow some climbing beans inside under cover over summer as an insurance against gales stripping and tearing them to nothing but stems and stalks, also had big problems with peas just rotting in the constant rain last year so I'm trying some peas and mange tout inside as well - nothing to lose really as I ended up with little or no peas at all last year.

peas be with you ..and also with me

[indigox]

And me too! i only had about 3 pods last year, my peas were a disaster.

[-pat m]

I will bne pulling mine up soon once the outside crop takes over. I've been picking beans for a few weeks now. I would say depending on where you live some times it's better to grow in a PT. I would never grow runners in one though as it would be far to hot

I am trying everything in my poly this year but you may have answered a question about my runners –The first flowers at the bottom of the plant seem to be away from the plant is this due to the heat Marathon? I was thinking about cutting a few off?

Regards
Pat

[-pat m]

I grow some climbing beans inside under cover over summer as an insurance against gales stripping and tearing them to nothing but stems and stalks, also had big problems with peas just rotting in the constant rain last year so I'm trying some peas and mange tout inside as well - nothing to lose really as I ended up with little or no peas at all last year.

peas be with you ..and also with me

I have never grown peas (I have never grown a lot really) but I am sooooo excited about my peas – The tunnel seems not to have effected them too much there are a lot of peas set they just need plumping up now! They are next to my Broad beans which did /doing fantastic with lots of early sown flowers around the doors of the tunnel to attract wandering bees!

Regards
Pat

[Flummery]

Those peas are looking great. They are self fertile and won't need the insects' help.

[marathon]

I am trying everything in my poly this year but you may have answered a question about my runners –The first flowers at the bottom of the plant seem to be away from the plant is this due to the heat Marathon? I was thinking about cutting a few off?

Regards
Pat

sorry for the delay. I've been on holiday.

In answer to your question I'm not sure about the flowers I have just found that they don't cope with the heat. So so I always grow runners outside and some french indoors and out. Although I have to say I prefer F/Beans as they are much easier to freeze.

My dwarf French beans are still going great guns in the tunnel,today I picked loads and they weighed in at over a kilo.