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Avonnow
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Joined: Mon Apr 19, 2010 3:01 pm
Location: Merritt Island, Florida

Beans

I have a question when do you call it quits on beans plants, vine or bush. Sometimes I really know as the plants just look plain bad, but on the vines it is harder to know how long they will go on producing. I had beans vines growing that froze during Dec. I cut them back some and they came back nice. I started getting beans about a month ago, some look like they are continuing to get new flowers, but is there like a peak on a plant and they just go down hill, or because it is really getting into the warmer weather will then continue through the spring. I have Rattlesnake Beans, Fortex Pole Beans, and Blue Lake pole beans. Should I trim them back. Thanks, I just don't want to leave them on too long, or rip them out prematurely. :wink:

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jal_ut
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Location: Northern Utah Zone 5

What a dilema. :) Here Jack Frost takes care of that for me about the middle of September. Maybe some of the Southern growers will have some ideas?

gumbo2176
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Location: New Orleans

Sherry, my experience is this........I've had bean plants vine nicely, produce a good crop then all of a sudden stop producing even though the vines looked like they should go on. I'll generally give them a couple weeks to show me that they are going to keep going or I make them go away and start over.

I think about it this way. In the south, we can plant beans about 9 months out of the year and once they pop up, they take off. My yard longs were putting out flowers less than 5 weeks after planting last summer and beans soon followed for several more weeks of bountiful harvest. I'm not going to wait several weeks to see if a crop will start over, it's too easy to put in new.

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Gary350
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Location: TN. 50 years of gardening experience.

This is my experience in Tennessee with beans our last frost is typically April 20 but the past several years it has been more like April 10.

I plant beans about the last week of April and get a bushel basket of beans about first week of July from 3 rows 20 ft long. Second crop of beans comes several weeks later but it is always small. Plants look bad but they make beans but not many. Thirds crop is even worse.

Last summer I did an experement I picked all my sweet corn about Mid July then cut down all the corn stalks and planted 3 rows of beans 20 ft long where the corn was. I got more beans from this crop than I got from the 2nd and 3rd crop of other beans.

I have pretty much decided first crop is going to be 80% of the total if you let the beans continue to grow and make a 2nd and 3rd crop too. We always have hot dry summers and last summer we had 7 weeks of 100 degree weather.

Your in Florida planting a garden in different weather conditions you might be able to figure out from this information how your beans will turn out.

I also use legume inoculant. It does not take much. Wet the beans then drain off extra water. Then sprinkle a little legume inoculant powder on the beans it doesn't take much less than 1/8 teaspoon. Stir well then plant the beans. Legume inoculant gives the beans the ablilty to use nitrogen from the air. Legume inoculant is expensive about $15 for a tiny bag. Put the powder in a empty Kitchen type Pepper shaker to apply it to the beans. A $15 bag will last 10 years and you won't have to buy fertilizer.

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Avonnow
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Location: Merritt Island, Florida

Thanks so much - I got alot out of this, I am going to take some of them out. It is the best time for things to grow and grow fast and if new seeds will produce better it makes sense. Hey Gumbo2176, :D I bought those yard long beans you suggest last fall and they are already climbing - I can't wait to see them. They are the only true NEW thing in the bean family I tried. I kinds like the rattlesnake as they do so well here in the heat. Gary thanks for the idea on the innoculent, I do have some and use it WHEN I REMEMBER, but I like the idea of mixing it with the seeds first. Thanks. :D

gumbo2176
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Location: New Orleans

Sherry, glad to hear you are trying the yard longs. You will not be disappointed with them. Best if picked in the 16-20 inch range and about as round as a regular lead pencil in my opinion. I have mine in the ground now but they are just peaking out of the soil now.



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