Best climbing beans

[newbieveggie]

Hi all

This year I have grown climbing bean cobra and also a runner bean. My kids think that the runner beans are hairy and yucky but love the climbing bean. However despite growing loads of plants they havent been that prolific. What stringless (don't need a dwarf variety) beans do you grow and are they REALLY prolific producers so I can get some for next year ?
Thanking you in advance for you vast knowledge and experience

[ginger ninger]

I've grown "Enorma" "White Lady" "Scarlett" and "Red Rum" over an archway, i love the older varieties because they crop so well and not stringy, i threw "White Lady " in because of the white/yellow flower's. Here's a before and after.

[OllieMartin]

I grew "Enorma" Runner beans and "Tendergreen" French beans. I found the Enorma have produced a large number and am still harvesting from them continuously, although they don't have much taste (I've never found runner beans to be particularly tastey). The Tendergreen don't grown very high, but have produced pretty well, they taste as good as shop bought (although I would hope they tasted better)

[blackkitty]

I've got six plants each of blauhilde and nectar gold and I'm picking about a pound of beans every few days.

[rustylady]

Cobra climbing french is doing really well for me this year, but last year not so good. It's not just variety that counts, it's also soil preparation and weather conditions that affect the crop. Runner beans Polestar this year, plus some from last years plants that were cut back and threw up new shoots this spring and are cropping really well (can't remember the variety as I've lost my notes)

[rana]

You may have a problem improving on Cobra which is known for its heavy cropping and long season (and it has an RHS AGM).

I always grow Blue Lake for reliability and long season and this year have tried Mrs Fortune which has provided purple blotched beans earlier in the season, I will grow it again.
As for runners I grew Enorma for years but have now switched to Wisley Magic - excellent crops of tender beans.

[Two_Sheds]

I eat most of my French (what you call climbing) beans dried, but Cosse Violette is my favourite fresh bean ... it's quick, early, you can spot it easily to pick (it's nearly black), it's stringless and prolific. Purple Queen is its dwarf cousin.
PM me if you want some seeds

[newbieveggie]

My beans are on a sloping site but I dug deep trenches and filled them with compost and saturated newspaper. Its not that windy but then this hasn't been a particularly wind free summer. I don't find they wind around canes very well so I strung several horizontal strings in the hope that they would latch onto them. They didn't really like those either and preferred to get chummy with my runners !

[veggie nut]

I am surprised you didn't find Cobra prolific - I grew them last year, saved seed and grew again this year and, so long as I keep picking, have found they are extremely prolific and provide more than we can eat. I am also growing Blauhilde (mainly for freezing) which seem to be later than Cobra but also delicious and prolific. I plant the seed direct into the plot, 2 per cane, rather than starting in seed trays and potting on.

Good luck!

[LottieGlut]

I tried Mrs Fortune. They were prolific but no-one seemed keen on eating them. People round my table claimed the blue blotching made them look diseased.

[SarzWix]

Cobra x 10 along a big bean frame are giving me more beans than I can cope with this year (no room lrft in freezer now!), but last year, growing up a wigwam, they were rubbish

[pdblake]

I've tried Sultana beans this year and they are cropping really well. Lovely and sweet too.

[CimaDirapa]

I always grow one climbing, one dwarf and one runner.

I found that Montano is probably the best dwarf as it takes little space but more importantly it's sweet and got a very good flavour.

For runner I usually grow Celebration as it's got good taste but this year I am trying some Red Rum as well, just to compare.

As for climbing I grow only based on flavour so for me it's Cobra and Chinese Long Bean the latter probably the best tasting climbing bean I found.

[Glaurung]

My cobra did badly last year, but very well this year. More prolific than the Cheroke tears I am also growing.

[Lottieval]

I'm growing Blauhilde, climbing French, for the third time this year, they are prolific and tasty, also fun for kids as they are purple raw but turn green when cooked. I've also grown runner Wisley Magic, they are long and don't get tough unless you leave them too long.