green beans won't leaf out - why?
Hi, just planted my green beans for the fourth time. Can't figure out whats going on. They just won't leaf out. Only about 2 in 10 will. Have tried 4 different seed brands with the same outcome. Is there something wrong with my soil? It's plenty warm here in Northern Ohio. Any ideas? thanks
You can sow green beans outdoors but you are running out of time for the planting season. Put a collar around the beans and use a hoop insect netting or light row cover. There would be a lot of creatures out now that would like nothing better than to eat the top of your beans.
Birds, slugs, snails, cutworms are my usual suspects.
Birds, slugs, snails, cutworms are my usual suspects.
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GardeningCook
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Actually, the OP isn't "running out of time" yet for sowing green beans - at least bush types - in Ohio. In fact, I'll be sowing some next month for a late-summer/fall crop. Bush types are quick at the draw.imafan26 wrote:You can sow green beans outdoors but you are running out of time for the planting season.
As for the OP's germination/growing problems, I'd not only look at the quality of your soil, but also light & moisture levels.
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applestar
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@mach1cj, when you say they are not leafing out, do you mean they sprout and grow the seedleaves but the true leaves aren't growing?
SLUGS are the primary culprits in my garden. They LOVE to eat the seed leaves full of holes. Then the true leaves. Once the bean plants get several pairs of true leaves, they can take the damage and keep on growing, but if they lose those first leaves, they are stunted and have trouble growing.
Another major obstacle to bean growing are rabbits and groundHOGs. They love to chomp them down as soon as they grow. Last year, my beans got chomped down to seedleaves, grew side shoots, and got chomped down again. After the third time, they gave up.
Cutworms will chop down bean seedlings at soil level, and leave them wilted on the ground.
SLUGS are the primary culprits in my garden. They LOVE to eat the seed leaves full of holes. Then the true leaves. Once the bean plants get several pairs of true leaves, they can take the damage and keep on growing, but if they lose those first leaves, they are stunted and have trouble growing.
Another major obstacle to bean growing are rabbits and groundHOGs. They love to chomp them down as soon as they grow. Last year, my beans got chomped down to seedleaves, grew side shoots, and got chomped down again. After the third time, they gave up.
Cutworms will chop down bean seedlings at soil level, and leave them wilted on the ground.
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skiingjeff
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I was having problems with the beens being eaten by birds, I think. Our garden is fenced so I know its not the rabbits and we don't have ground hogs.
The little guys would start sprouting and then I'd end up with just a little stalk and no leaves the next time I happened to check. So we put insect netting row covering over them and they are coming up great with no eating going on.
Good luck!
The little guys would start sprouting and then I'd end up with just a little stalk and no leaves the next time I happened to check. So we put insect netting row covering over them and they are coming up great with no eating going on.
Good luck!
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GardeningCook
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It's the same ground I've been planting for the last 35yrs. The only thing I did this year different was to deep spade it and till in last years grass clippings and leafs collected by the lawnmower. I also added several bags of peat moss and deep tilled. It gets plenty of sun and water. I know all about the rabbits and woodchucks, but the plants never get leafed out for them to bother.
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applestar
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I can't be absolutely positive from the photo, but you are saying that the top of those seedlings were NOT bitten off, right? Completely lack of true leaf development?
I think I'm also seeing lack of vigor and full development of the roots and hypocotyl (the stem between roots and seedleaves). That and with what you said about working the grass clippings, etc. into the soil....
Do you suppose herbicide contamination is possible?
This is photo 11 from the article at https://www.sbreb.org/brochures/herbicide/amino.htm
I think I'm also seeing lack of vigor and full development of the roots and hypocotyl (the stem between roots and seedleaves). That and with what you said about working the grass clippings, etc. into the soil....
Do you suppose herbicide contamination is possible?
This is photo 11 from the article at https://www.sbreb.org/brochures/herbicide/amino.htm
root may turn brown and die starting at the point where the root joins the hypocotyl, about 1 to 1.5 inches below the soil surface (lower plant, Photo 11). Plants with injury similar to the upper plant in Photo 11 would probably die due to a non-functional root system, but plants with injury similar to the lower plant often will survive by pro-ducing secondary roots from the hypocotyl. However, low moisture in the surface 2 inches of soil can prevent the suc-cessful production of secondary roots and the damaged plant would then die.
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Taiji
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The pictures you posted exactly match what just a few of my bean seedlings do every year. I would guess maybe only one out of about every 6 or 8 plants. Those that do I simply replant. But, years ago, almost all my seedlings did that exact same thing.
I think I read or someone told me to try making a little trench for the seeds in the garden soil only about an inch deep. Then after placing the seeds in the trench cover them with about a half inch or inch of fine potting soil, not regular garden soil. This method seems to have solved my problem. I think the thinking is that the bean seedlings have some trouble breaking through the possibly hard soil and the friction created as they grow actually pulls off the new leaves before they ever reach the surface. Beans seem to be especially prone to that for some reason in my experience. Try planting some using just some fine potting soil as a covering. I will be anxious to see if it helps!
I guess there could be something else at work here, but this seems to have solved my problem. In fact, every seed of any kind I plant in the garden, I cover with fine potting soil to aid in ease of germination and breaking through. It seems to have helped with everything for me.
I think I read or someone told me to try making a little trench for the seeds in the garden soil only about an inch deep. Then after placing the seeds in the trench cover them with about a half inch or inch of fine potting soil, not regular garden soil. This method seems to have solved my problem. I think the thinking is that the bean seedlings have some trouble breaking through the possibly hard soil and the friction created as they grow actually pulls off the new leaves before they ever reach the surface. Beans seem to be especially prone to that for some reason in my experience. Try planting some using just some fine potting soil as a covering. I will be anxious to see if it helps!
I guess there could be something else at work here, but this seems to have solved my problem. In fact, every seed of any kind I plant in the garden, I cover with fine potting soil to aid in ease of germination and breaking through. It seems to have helped with everything for me.