Lucy Chamberlain’s Fruit and Veg
Cream, red or purple, flat or pencil shaped, French beans are prolific croppers in late summer. Lucy Chamberlain explains how to cultivate the most flavoursome pods
PICKED when they are young and tender, there are few treats finer than homegrown French beans (Phaseolus vulgaris), available in both dwarf and climbing varieties. Given the right conditions and treatment they’ll yield at an astounding rate, and now is a great time to sow them.
Being a tender annual, compost/soil temperatures at sowing are important; at least 10°C (50°F) is needed. For very early crops (pods in late June), you could have started sowing dwarf varieties in late March under glass, then transplant seedlings into growbags and slide them outside in late May. But if soil is light and free-draining, and you live in the south, you can try sowing under rigid cloches now; wait until May if you live in the north.
Choosing a sunny, sheltered spot is especially important for these early crops. Come June, we can all sow outside, setting seeds 1½-2in (4-5cm) deep into a free-draining soil in full sun. Work in a little superphosphate if you can, avoid very windy spots and protect seedlings from slugs. Climbers yield continually from one sowing, whereas dwarf varieties produce pods in flushes and often benefit from early and late sowings, with the latest in July.
French bean flowers are self-pollinating, so early undercover crops don’t need to be accessible to bees. This trait also makes seed-saving easy.
Take your pick!
French beans are annuals, and the flowering rate of annuals slows considerably once seeds start being produced. Picking pods while they are young and ‘beanless’ ensures massive yields, so do this daily in high summer. Spacing and watering also impact the crop: leave 8in (20cm) between plants and cultivate sizeable plants with strong root systems to boost flowering. Water well during flowering and pod production to maximise yields.
For climbing French bean options, try ‘Cobra’, ‘Pantheon’ or stunning ‘Borlotto Lingua di Fuoco’. Excellent dwarf French bean options include ‘Purple Teepee’ and ‘Purple Queen’, ‘Nomad’, ‘Golden Teepee’ and ‘Sonesta’. See page 20 for more recommendations, and kickstart your summer of beans now!
“Pick the pods while young for massive yields”