How many beans per cane/string?

[bearded bloke]

Last year I did four to the pole - Blue Lake,Csar,Helda & Hunter - cropped really well but did need a lot of water

[Alison]

Last year getting a lot of water wasn't a problem on my plot

[Two_Sheds]

I grow my climbing beans 9" apart, and they put on so much growth, and produce so many beans, that I can't imagine being able to squeeze any more in.

I may do one wigwam as a trial though, with the plants only 3" apart

Watering solution

[Jamesy_uk]

I wouldn't do it with Runners but French beans might be worth a go, If I was going to do that many beans I'd plant them pretty deep as I imagine like someone said earlier they will need a lot of water.

[bearded bloke]

I should probably add for clarification that mine were grown on half a teepee,with pumpkins grown at each end of the bed & turned to fruit in the normally unused area underneath the canes which were at 9" centres .....





I have not got a pic of the canes fully loaded,but in that bed were,the beans plus 2 x pumpkin,2 x courgette & a marrow growing up the obelisk ...

[Thelma Sanders]

I had Spagna Blanca drying beans 5 to a pole on the wig wam last year- poles abouta foot apart, and just left them to dry. All the old boys said they were too close together - but I got an amazing crop from 4ft square I had to add some guylines to stop it blowing over when we had the high winds but other than that they had no special treatment, as the sky watered them enough

[Incy]

I normally do 3 or 4 to a cane and get really good crops. We're still eating last years french beans that we froze.

[annacruachan]

Can this be done with runners? In a polytunnel? That would solve many problems up here in the cold, wet and windy!

[annacruachan]

...not always cold, to be fair, but generally colder than more southerly latitudes.

[Two_Sheds]

I'd plant them pretty deep as I imagine like someone said earlier they will need a lot of water.

Yes, they're thirsty plants.
Planting deep isn't the answer though: you want the roots going deep. You get that by not watering the soil surface (which makes roots stay near the surface and more liable to dry out).

Water through pop holes direct to the roots, and the roots will chase the water down into the soil: stronger plants, more drought tolerant, less work for the gardener

[SarzWix]

Can this be done with runners? In a polytunnel? That would solve many problems up here in the cold, wet and windy!

Can't see why not, if you can feed and water them enough.

[Thelma Sanders]

would they get pollinated ok in the tunnel? or grow the new ones that don't need pollinating

[vikkib]

I was planning on trying the plan below this year for beans.

It's the south side of the shed so lots of sun but I'm not sure the Borlotti will get enough. Will have to see how it works out!

[BUFFS]

i find that what is under the roots is the most important,i have just buried about 2ft depth of fresh stuff from the compost bin below where all my types of french beans will be put this week,i just move that strip along the patch each year,we even had a bumper crop last year,still using them from the freezer,i plant at a hands width and up onto a wood-framed heavy mesh,it just lifts out at the end of the season,i hope everyone has a better crop than last year...

[Mr Bones]

Two runners per pole and five or six cobra do ok. The runners are a bit dense foliage wise, making it sometimes difficult to find the beans but the cobra are just fine. As everyone else has already said, plenty of feed and watering.