Beans: how to grow a good crop

Beans are one of the oldest vegetable crops; they have been cultivated in South Asia, South and Central America for more than one millennium. On the European continent, the culture is young, but quickly gained popularity and recognition. A kind of vegetable meat, thanks to which the population of even the poorest countries of the world survives.

Beans are divided into American and Asian, which in turn are divided into shelling, sugar (asparagus) and semi-sugar varieties. Asian beans are called mung beans, the culture is thermophilic and rarely cultivated in vegetable gardens in our country.

American beans are represented by four types:

• common beans;
• multi-flowered beans;
• holly beans
• lima beans. 

In our country, mainly common beans are grown, which have bush, semi-curly and curly forms. A variety of forms and varieties with different ripening periods makes it possible to grow this heat-loving crop in most of our country (1).

By the way, in stores, common bean seeds are often sold under the name “vegetable beans.”

Growing beans 

Despite its southern origin, beans are quite easy to grow even in the climatic conditions of central Our Country. A short time from sowing to grain ripening allows you to get crops both by direct sowing in the ground and seedlings.

Beans require fertile, well-drained soil that is neutral to slightly acidic. Heavy soils are pre-enriched with loosening materials (peat, old sawdust, sand, etc.). Soils with acidity below 6 units are deoxidized in autumn. 

Organic matter (compost or humus) is added 2 weeks before sowing the beans.

The place for growing beans should be warm, well lit by the sun and protected from the winds. It is important that legumes have not been grown in this area for at least 3 years.

It is also important for this crop that at the time of sowing the soil is warmed up to at least 10 ° C. And the optimum temperature for growing beans is 20 – 27 ° C. Therefore, in cooler periods, plants are protected with non-woven materials.

For climbing and semi-curing varieties of beans, support is required. It is not required for bushes, since they barely reach 70 cm in height.

planting beans 

It is recommended to pre-grow beans. To do this, seeds of the size and color characteristic of the variety are selected, without damage. Placed in a bright pink solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes, then washed with clean water. After that, the seeds are evenly laid out in shallow containers and covered with a damp cloth. To reduce the evaporation of moisture, the container is tightened with cling film, making several punctures in it with a thin needle. Germination is carried out in a warm place. When a root germ appears, the beans are planted in seedling cassettes or cups, sprinkled with 3 cm of loose soil.

When planting in the ground, sprouted or dry beans are placed flat or sideways so that the place where the root appears looks down. Landing is carried out in grooves 5–6 cm deep, preliminarily abundantly watered and compacted. Fall asleep with loose soil.

Dry seeds germinate for a long time, up to 2 weeks. Germination can be accelerated by soaking the seeds in a hot (65 ° C) solution of a bright pink solution of potassium permanganate for literally 20 minutes, then they are dried on a napkin and planted in the ground.

When sowing bush beans, the distance between seeds should be 10 – 20 cm, depending on the variety and variety. For bush varieties, the distance between rows should be at least 13 cm. The same schemes must be observed when planting seedlings. And it is also very important to transplant plants into beds so as not to damage the root system!

Outdoor bean care 

Caring for beans is easy. It consists in regular watering, weeding and loosening the soil, top dressing, protection from diseases and pests.

Watering. Beans do not like excess water, so watering is carried out only when the soil dries. To reduce their number, as well as the constant loosening of the soil and weeding, you can mulch the soil with dried grass.

Feeding. The amount of feeding of beans depends on the level of soil fertility. The plant needs a minimum amount of nitrogen to develop, because large doses will lead to an increase in green mass at the expense of the formation of beans. At the beginning of budding, a solution of potassium fertilizer is added to the root zone, and when the first beans are tied in climbing varieties, top dressing is done with a solution of potassium monophosphate.

Additional work. It is necessary to weed out the weeds in a timely manner and tie climbing varieties to the supports.

Protection against diseases and pests. Most bean diseases are closely related to aphid infestation. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully monitor the appearance of the pest and timely carry out treatments with bioinsecticides, for example, Fitoverm. To prevent diseases, watering and spraying of plants with Trichocin is used, and to increase immunity, Energen’s solution (2).

Market – drugs 

Harvesting beans 

Harvesting of asparagus varieties is carried out as the beans form, when the grain in them has barely reached the size of a wheat grain.

The harvest of peeling varieties in climbing forms (3) is removed as the beans ripen (the wrapper loses its juiciness, and the grain has formed and become hard), folded in a dry, warm, ventilated place for a day or two, as soon as the wings begin to move apart, peel and dry the grain. In sunny weather, this can be done outdoors.

The crop of shelling varieties of bush beans (3) is harvested at the same time, and the pods are ripened in a dry, warm, well-ventilated place for 1-2 days, then the grain is peeled and dried.

If the beans are not ripe and have been exposed to cold rains, then you can cut the bushes at ground level and hang them in a dry, warm place. After 3-10 days, the beans are cut off from them, the grain is peeled and dried.

Experienced gardeners believe that the signal for harvesting is the drying of the leaves.

Bean storage rules 

Asparagus beans are mostly frozen, pre-blanching in boiling water for 2 minutes and cut into convenient pieces.

After high-quality drying, the grain of shelling beans is poured into clean and dry jars and closed with lids. In this form, the beans can be stored for up to 12 months. It is important that moist air does not enter the jars. If the appearance of grain beetle larvae is suspected, the grain is heated for 30 minutes in the oven at a temperature of 60 ° C, poured into heated jars, a cut clove of garlic or a sprig of dry rosemary is placed on top and closed with a lid.

Popular questions and answers 

We asked about beans agronomist Oleg Ispolatov – he answered the most popular questions of summer residents.

Sources of

1. Lebedeva A.T. 150 vegetable crops in your garden // M.: Eterna, 2006
2. State catalog of pesticides and agrochemicals approved for use on the territory of the Federation as of July 6, 2021 // Ministry of Agriculture of the Federation https://mcx.gov.ru/ministry/departments/departament-rastenievodstva-mekhanizatsii-khimizatsii- i-zashchity-rasteniy/industry-information/info-gosudarstvennaya-usluga-po-gosudarstvennoy-registratsii-pestitsidov-i-agrokhimikatov/
3. State Register of Breeding Achievements https://reestr.gossortrf.ru/