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| French Beans | Common name; Kidney beans |
French beans are an alternative to Runner beans.
Because they don't crop for as long as runners they should be sown in batches every few weeks .
They crop best on a light, well drained slightly alkaline soil.
Depending upon variety, the pods are either flat, or pencil podded, and mature from July to October subject to sowing times.
Dwarf varieties grow to 250-300mm (10"-12") high and are generally self supporting, whereas climbing varieties, may grow to 2metres (7ft) tall, and require supporting,
Pick the pods when they are young and tender.
If they are left too long on the plants they become stringy and the plants will stop producing.
There are yellow varieties, better known as haricot beans or flageolet beans where only the dried seeds are eaten, not the whole pod.
Flageolets should be harvested when the beans are soft and green, and haricots when the seeds have ripened to white or light brown
Week 15; Make an early sowing outdoors under cloches if ground conditions allow, keeping them covered until the end of May.
Week 17; Sow 2 seeds vertically to a 75mm (3") pot or one to a cell as seen here and place in a frost free frame and grow on until planting out time.
Germination may take up to two weeks.
Prepare beds for maincrop sowings, by raking in a top dressing of fish, blood & bone fertiliser at a rate of 80gms (3oz) per sq. metre.
Remove any weeds that have gown since initial preparation last October.
Week 19; Prick out seedlings into individual 70mm (3") pots as seen here;
Week 22; Plant out potted seedlings.
Week 26>; Make outdoor sowing by sowing the seeds 50-75mm (2"-3") apart in 50mm (2") deep drills.
When the young plants are showing the first pair of leaves, thin them out to 150mm (6") apart.
n.b Make successional sowings twice a month until Week 30.
Week 40; Place cloches over the late sowings to protect the plants from early frosts.
French beans self-pollinate and seeds usually come true so it is worth while to save a few seed for next season
Allow a few pods to mature on the plants until papery, then pick and leave to dry indoors.
When they are crisp, shell and store the beans in a cool, dry and dark place.
Week 44; Prepare beds for next years crop by digging the ground deeply, and incorporating well-rotted manure or compost.
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